The Assassin's Moon
by midnight.darkztar
Summary: The massacre of Kagome's entire family could be laid at the door of the House of Inutashio.  Now a grown woman, she vows to avenge the deaths of her loved ones.
1. Chapter 1

_**DISCLAIMER – All of Inuyasha and its characters belong solely to Rumiko Takahashi**_

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 1**_

The night was a liquid darkness. The Gods opened the skies with a vengeance that made all the living creatures cower with fear. Overnight, new oceans and rivers were carved by the fury of the elements. Men and animals alike took shelter hoping that they would survive to see a new dawn. Only the most brave or foolish would be out on a night like this.

Such a man galloped on the main road with only one destination burning in his mind. His vision was completely obscured by rain and darkness. He could hear his heart beating in time to the pounding of his horse's hooves on the wet path below. Completely soaked by the sheets of rain, he was cold but there was nothing as cold as the chill that had settled in his heart. He felt nauseous with exhaustion and with the excess blood rushing to his head. He had lost feeling in his hands and legs long ago and could only hope that he would not slip off his horse. As dangerous as it was to go at the breakneck gallop that he was pushing his horse, his life was worthless if he didn't make it in time.

_Please let me be wrong._ he thought to himself. _I'll dedicate the rest of my life to your service if you will spare their lives. Oh God. Let me be wrong._

The man who lived by no one's rules but his own prayed for the first time in his life. He prayed to a God that he never believed in. A God that he will be spending the rest of his life repenting to for his sins if only He would let them live.

_Please._

"Run for me." he whispered to the hose.

As if the stallion understood him, it surged forward in the rain with another burst of reckless abandon. Senses rendered useless, the proud man keenly felt his helplessness. His arrival and life was completely dependent on the heaving beast beneath him. He grimly hung on and prayed to which ever God was listening that he will get there in time.

_..._

The gate to his estate was wide open. He had left instructions to keep it closed at all times. There was absolutely no reason for it to be open. Urging his steadfast mount on, the stallion flew through the swinging gates. The man jumped off before the horse stopped moving. He hit the ground hard and came up rolling to his feet. His right shoulder throbbed with pain where it took the most impact from his fall but he ignored it. Pain was good. It meant that he was still alive.

There were bodies strewn all over the courtyard. There was so much blood that the ground of courtyard was converted into a lake of blood. He refused to let himself identify the bodies. There would be more than enough time to grieve later.

He ran back the outer garden and burst into the house. Inside the house, it was even worse. Without rain to obscure their features, he could not distance himself from the gruesome deaths of people that he had known most of his life. Servants, men and women, young and old, no one was spared. The children..._the nursery._

Sprinting upstairs, he prayed that they had missed the nursery. He ran down the hallway to the very end where the nursery was located. Steeling himself for the very worst, he burst into the nursery.

_No no..NOOO. _Beside the cradle, he saw the ravaged body of his beloved wife. It was obvious that she had been stabbed several times in her pregnant stomach before they slit her throat. They obviously wanted to make sure that there would be no heirs to continue his line. The vision of her face frozen in fear and agony would be forever seared in his memory. There was so much blood and pain on her precious face. He wiped at her face tenderly and gathered her broken body to him.

Her swollen belly which he had listened to for so many nights was now covered in blood and fatal wounds. The life that he had so eagerly listened for was now silent. Dead before it had a chance to take a breath in their cruel world. He would never get to teach his son how to swing his first sword or hear his daughter sing again for him. There would be no more sweet homecomings to his wife's welcome arms and her bright smile that meant the world to him.

For the first time in is life, he wept. He had not wept when he was kidnapped and sold to the slavers. He had not wept when he as a Duke's son felt the first touch of the whip upon his virgin back. He never broke down or pleaded for mercy. All of his trials had made him that much stronger. He had vowed to himself to never be vulnerable again. Now, they were all dead because _of him._

It was then that he heard her.

"Is anyone there? Help me!"

Carefully laying down his wife's corpse, he frantically crawled to the place where he thought he heard the voice.

"Where are you?" he cried out.

"Here!' said the slightly muffled voice.

It was closer this time. The dresser. He shoved the dresser off the seemingly covered hole and dropped to his knees. Just a week ago, the workers had accidentally dropped the newly made dresser on the floor. The heavy dresser went right through the floorboards and left a massive hole. He had sent for the master carpenter but the man went over to the next province to take care of his ailing mother. As a temporary solution, he had fitted planks of wood over the hole.

A few of his fingernails snapped as they dug into the wood. He growled at the weakness of his human hands. Pain clearing his mind, he remembered that he had a dagger. He worked the blade into the trench that his fingers made. After an eternity, the plank of wood sprung up and revealed his dirty but completely alive daughter.

"Kagome." he breathed.

He picked her up from the hole and hugged her tightly. _She was alive. _Kagome wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

"Oh daddy! I was so scared. Mommy forced me down there and all I could hear was her screaming." She looked at him with horror filled eyes. "What happened to mommy?"

Forgetting in his relief that she was alive, he belatedly covered her eyes.

"Don't look sweetie. There is nothing here that you need to see."

He reluctantly let go of her. She kept trying to look around him.

"Where is mommy?" Her voice rose higher and higher as she began to panic. "Where is she?"

"Hush darling. Mommy is -"

"I WANT MOMMY!"

"KAGOME SAKURA HIGURASHI." he snapped at her. She looked at him with wide eyes. "This is not the time to ask for mo-mommy." he choked past the lump in his throat. "I need you to stay calm. It's dangerous. We need to leave _now."_

"What about -"

"No questions. I need your complete obedience. Understood?"

She nodded woodenly. "Now close your eyes and don't open them until I tell you to."

"But-"

"Kagome."

She shut up. He hated being so harsh with her but questions were not a luxury that either of them could afford. Kagome closed her eyes. He picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. He quickly moved through the house and out of the courtyard. His faithful horse was standing exactly where he left it.

"One more long journey my friend and then you'll enjoy green pastures for the rest of your life."

He put Kagome on the saddle.

"Stay here. If you see anyone but me, I want you to ride for the border. Promise me."

Kagome nodded solemnly. Running back into the house, he pulled out his flint and struck a flame. The wood easily caught fire. He ran back out into the courtyard.

"Goodbye my Heart. I swear to take good care of our darling for the rest of my life." he vowed to his dead wife as he watched the flames grow higher.

Running out of the courtyard, he swung up and sat behind Kagome. He turned the horse towards the gate and urged it into a canter. Riding swiftly for the border, he left the wreckage of his home burning in the distant past.

...


	2. Chapter 2

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 2**_

Riding for throughout the night, the faithful horse ran for the border. Using knowledge only privy to himself and few a select others, they made it through the lines undetected. The guards on both sides of the border were oblivious to their midnight rush into enemy territory.

Kagome had passed out hours ago. A tree branch had caught her in the head and left a bloody gash on her forehead. The bleeding had stopped and the professional in him assessed the injury as a mere flesh wound. The father in him was burning with fervor to get his daughter to safety.

With the beginning rays of dawn breaking through the night sky, he stopped by a farmhouse not far from the capital city. He carefully dismounted with Kagome in his arms. He patted the heaving flanks of his faithful mount and led it to the green pasture on the side.

"You have served me well my friend. May you have a long peaceful life full of green pastures."

The horse whickered at him before trotting off to graze on the succulent dew touched grass. Carefully balancing Kagome in his arms, he knocked on the door of the farmhouse. "Greetings! Is anyone home?"

The door slowly opened to reveal a middle aged farmer and his wife. "Sorry to disturb you so early in the morning." said the man politely in the native dialect of the region. "We have been caught in the storm last night and a branch knocked my daughter out."

The wife clucked in distress as he revealed his precious bundle in his arms. She hurri ed forward brushed Kagome's hair away from her face.

"Go set a fire, Hanten." she cried into the house.

A small boy of around 8 years old hurried to do the old woman's biding. The farmer held the door open for the man and his daughter.

"Welcome to my house and be warm." he said gruffly as his wife hustled around the house.

"Thank you Mister."

"Sir. Come lay your daughter down here."

He reluctantly set Kagome down on the offered pallet. She looked so pale against the worn bedsheets. It was obvious that the couple was not wealthy. He wanted better for his daughter but it had to be good enough. The most important thing was that she would be safe. The woman knelt down by the pallet with a basin of hot water. He touched her hand lightly.

"Thank you but I can do it."

"It's no trouble, sir. It will be my responsibility as the woman of the house to take care of your daughter."

"Thank you for your kindness then."

He withdrew to let the woman clean Kagome's wound. As he had known before, it was just a flesh wound. Head wounds such as hers bled a lot but were not life threatening. Still, he was relieved to see her face free of blood. The woman moved slowly to her knees to empty the basin of the now bloody water.

"You look exhausted. You can go lie down and catch some sleep on our bed."

He declined her gracious offer. He was exhausted from his hellbent ride around the country but he had no time to rest. In making sure of their safety, he had not slept a wink. To him, this was a small mercy. Throughout his life, he taken life and seen things that would give the strongest men nightmares. It was a blessing that he did not dream. He had not dreamed of the men he killed since he was a young man but he knew with a certainty that the deaths of his beloved ones will haunt his dreams for the rest of his life. It was a small price to pay for the love he had in his life.

Bending down from his great height, he tenderly touched his daughter's smooth cheek. It was hot with fever and she was moaning in distress. Despite his command, he knew that his daughter was too curious to not open her eyes during their escape from their home. There was nothing he could do to dispel her nightmares. He could only hoped that the blood she inherited from her mother and him would be enough to give her courage. She was still young. Memories always faded with time.

Leaning over the most important thing in his life, he brushed a kiss on both of her flushed cheeks.

"Sleep well, my darling. Remember that mommy and daddy both love you." he whispered in her ear.

Straightening, he addressed the couple and the small boy regarding him warily.

"My good people. I will ask a boon of you that I wish I did not have to. I will not give you my name for your safety. My wife, my unborn child and the rest of my family were slaughtered like animals last night."

His eyes took on a hard glint. The woman gasped softly and put a hand on her breast.

"It is a grievous wrong that cannot go unavenged. My daughter is all that I have left. I may or may not return so I ask you to take care of her for me."

He looked at them with eyes of a haunted man with almost nothing to live for. The woman opened her mouth to speak but her husband shushed her.

"Upon my dead father's grave, I will take care of your daughter as one of my mine." The gruff farmer vowed.

"Thank you. This is not much but I hope this will cover the cost of my daughter."

The woman gasped at the huge bag of gold that he gave her. "This is far too much."

The man shook his head.

"No this is not nearly enough. My daughter is worth more than all the gold in the world to me."

"We will not take your money." she insisted. "We cannot."

"Yes, you can. See it as the Gods' reward for your goodwill and charity. Where I am going, I won't need it." His mouth twisted in a sardonic smile. "It will rest my conscience that it serves a better purpose than to weigh me down."

The woman hesitantly accepted the bag of gold.

"One last thing. My horse has served me well. Please ensure that it has green pastures to graze for the rest of its life."

"Done." the farmer promised.

The man took a few strides and walked out of the farmhouse.

"Wait." cried out the farmer's wife. "Will you not wait for your daughter to wake?"

The man stopped and turned around.

"My daughter is strong. She will recover. It is better for us to separate this way."

"If you are in such a rush, then please at least take this." The farmer's wife ran back into the house. She pushed a wrapped loaf of bread into his hands. "May God be with you."

"Thank you madam."

The man nodded to the couple standing the doorway of the farmhouse and he set off by foot.

"Do you think he will return?" whispered the wife to her husband.

"No. I do not think he will be returning from where he is going." The farmer watched the lone traveler fade into the distance. "The road that he chose to walk will be a long one. May the Gods watch over you."

...

The sun rose in the sky as he walked along the road. He was thankful that the sun in this country was not as unmerciful as the blistering heat of the desert. Even so, he was sweating and feeling quite thirsty by the time he reached the city gates. He had become soft with easy living. One would think with everything that the Gods had thrown at him that he would know better than to get comfortable with anything. It was too late to lament about it now. The most important thing was that Kagome's well being had been secured. Now there was one last matter to deal with.

Securing the farmer's straw hat that he found on the side of the road, he picked up walking his stick and started moving slowly towards the city gates. The soldiers guarding the gate barely spared him a glance. Inside the city, the marketplace was bustling with life. Merchants hawked their wares from their stalls and the tantalizing aroma of street food filled the air. His stomach grumbled. The bread that the farmer's wife had given had been long devoured. Pulling out a few coppers, he bought roasted meat from a vendor. Savouring the rich flavour in his mouth, he quickly finished his meal and continued on his way.

Entering the castle was no harder than his entry through the city gates. Just like soldiers at the city gates, his farmer's guise gifted him with anonymity. Strange was the custom of the king of this country. Every morning, he opened his castle gates to the commoners for petitions. His previous network of spies gleaned much information by just attending one of these gatherings. Once, his king had ordered a group of assassin to attack the king during a court session. Each assassin had failed as commoner after commoner used their own bodies as shields for their beloved king. The uninjured ones had meted out public justice before the King could even pass his decree. There was not another assassin attempt after that.

Standing among the other petitioners, he was surprised at the order and mannerisms of the people. A man had shoved his way rudely in front of him. Before he could even confront the man himself, the interloper was hauled out of the line and forced to the back of the line by the court wardens.

A scant hour later, he was admitted by a court warden to the throne room where the King was waiting. He bowed stiffly to the king. From under the brim of his straw hat, he surveyed the king. He had seen his profile on the coins and sent many a men to spy on him but he had never actually seen him in person. King Lykakides was a formidable, regal looking man with slightly greying hairs at his temple. He sat straight on his throne and looked at the world with clear eyes seem to see everything.

Lykakides raised a hand for him to rise. He straightened with the assistance of his walking stick.

"What is your petition to the Crown, farmer?" asked the King's councillor.

"The petition I present the King is one that he would be very interested in hearing about. That is if he would be interested in knowing what is happening over in the Lands of the West."

"And what would that be?" asked the councillor.

"Power is unstable in the West. King Inutashio had just ordered the deaths of the Duke of Westin and his family."

"How can that be?" sputtered the councillor. "The Duke of Westin is the King's Advisor and his right hand man. There is no way that King Inutashio would order his death. Guards! Take this liar away."

King Lykakides waved a hand.

"Cease your babbling Hyinath."

"But my majesty-"

"I'll tell you one more time to be quiet and then I will have you locked in your room." King Lykakides turned to address his petitioner. "I cannot say that this news does not intrigue me. But how does a simple farmer like you hear of this before my spies do? What guarantee do I have that it is the truth you speak?"

The man straightened and took off his hat. The guards stiffened and unsheathed their swords. King Lykakides raised his eyebrows.

"I do not know whether you are remarkably brave or exceedingly foolishness to walk straight into your enemy's lair."

"So I assume that you know who I am."

"How can I not recognize the face of Lord Higurashi, the bane of my kingdom and the notorious Duke of Westin himself?"

Lord Higurashi smiled wryly. "I wasn't aware that my reputation preceded my arrival."

"This matter you speak of, how do I know that this is not all a sham conjured by Inutashio for you to infiltrate into my good graces?"

"My family was butchered like animals in their beds last night."

Lord Higurashi raised his chin proudly and met the King's eyes. Without shame, he let the pain, grief and exhaustion of last night's ordeal shine in his eyes. He had seen the reflection of his eyes in the farmer's wife reaction and knew that he had the eyes of a man with nothing to live for.

"My condolences." the king said quietly. "What have you done for your king to mete out such a punishment?"

"I am guilty of nothing but putting my complete trust in my King. " Lord Higurashi said bitterly. "Years of service and friendship counted for nothing weighed against the lies of his vindictive Queen. In the end, Inutashio is still just a man."

King Lykakides was silent as he considered Lord Higurashi's words. "Why should I trust you? You are willing to betray a king you have served for your entire life."

"You will trust me and make me your new spymaster because a friend of your enemy is a friend of yours. I had bled for him. In return, he rewarded my fealty to him with the execution of my family. He betrayed me for the love of a woman."

"Not good enough. I have nothing to ensure your loyalty."

"Then so be it."

Lord Higurashi turned to leave.

"Is that how you think things work? You in my kingdom now. You cannot just waltz into my castle and intend to leave it the same way."

Lord Higurashi looked back with an arrogant tilt of his head. "I was planning to do exactly that. And how do you plan to stop me then?"

"Guards!"

The guards advanced on the man.

"Father!" a little girl screamed.

Suddenly a small girl in a dirty skirt flew past the guards to stand in front of her father.

"Do not hurt him, you bullies." she shouted at the men.

She threw her arms wide to protect her father. Lord Higurashi cursed and pushed Kagome behind him.

"What are you doing here, Kagome? I left you with the couple at the farmhouse for a reason."

"You left without saying goodbye." she said stubbornly.

King Lykakides looked at Kagome thoughtfully.

"Come forward, my child."

Kagome stared at King Lykakides curiously and made to move towards him.

"No."

Her father pushed her back behind him. "She will not be a pawn in your game."

"Would you rather she watch her father be drawn and quartered in front of her?

Kagome watched their exchange with wide eyes. Indecision warred within her father as he looked down at the last living member of his line.

"Kagome."

He called to her even as he kept a careful eye on the guards.

"Yes, daddy?" she replied from behind him.

"Do you want to do this? If you don't want to then daddy will take you away."

"If I don't then they will hurt you!"

Lord Higuarshi smiled.

"You know that your daddy is invincible. Just say the word and we will be out of here."

She touched his leg. "I want to talk to him."

"Are you sure angel?"

"I'm sure."

He kissed her on the cheek and set her down in front of him. As regal as any princess, she walked up to King Lykakides and dropped into a low curtsey, King Lykakides smiled.

"Come closer my child."

Kagome peered up at him with the inquisition of a child.

"You don't look like a man who would eat babies and little girls for breakfast."

King Lykakides guffawed and slapped his knee in laughter. Lord Higurashi rubbed his temples. King Lykakides regarded her with a twinkle in his eye.

"I eat little boys for breakfast too."

"I knew it!" shouted Kagome.

"Well, my child. What is your name?"

Kagome drew herself up and proudly recited, "My name is Kagome Sakura Higurashi."

"My my, that's a mouthful for a young girl like you."

"My mommy said that three names was more than enough for me. Any more would make my head swell up." Kagome sobered. "Will you help daddy avenge mommy?"

"Yes, my little darling. Now, will you answer a few of my questions?"

Kagome nodded solemnly.

"Do indulge this old man. I am curious as to how you managed to get into the city all by yourself. The nearest farm is miles away."

"I walked." Kagome said proudly.

"All the way?"

Kagome fidgeted and scuffed the toe of the shoe into the floor.

"Kagome?" She looked up at her father. "Please tell us how you got into the city. I'm interested as to how you made it to the city by yourself."

"Promise you won't be mad?"

"Yes, my angel.' Her father replied patiently.

"Well…I walked to the main road and waited for a farmer to pass by." She explained slowly. "When a wagon passed by, I threw a rock into the path of the wagon wheel. Naturally, the farmer stopped to see what his wagon ran over. When he did, I snuck on and hid among his vegetables."

Lykakides burst out into laughter.

"That would explain the smell of cabbage." Her father remarked dryly.

Kagome blushed.

"Oh what a resourceful girl! Then how did you get into the palace?"

Kagome got a sneaky look in her eye.

"I am a master of hide and seek." she declared. "And adults never pay attention to small child anyway. Your guards were too busy watching the maid clean." She looked thoughtful. "I really don't understand what is so interesting about dusting."

Her father coughed discretely while Lykakides laughed some more.

"My dear, you are a precious gem. Please answer one last question for me. How did you come by such a dashing wound?"

Kagome touched her bandaged forehead lightly.

"Daddy says that a branch caught me in the head while we were escaping the king's soldiers."

King Lykakides waved a footman over.

"Send for Lady Mahita and see that Lady Kagome is looked after." he ordered. "Also, summon my captain. I need to talk to him about the habits of our guards."

A few minutes later, a maidservant appeared to take Kagome away.

"You won't hurt my daddy right?" Kagome asked King Lykakides.

"I don't believe so, my sweet. Your father and I have lots to talk about."

"Yes, your majesty." Kagome dropped into another graceful curtsey. She looked back in askance at her father.

"Run along, darling. I'm sure Lady Mahita take good care of you."

"Yes, father." She ran back to kiss him on the cheek before following the maid out of the room.

"You have a inquisitive daughter."

"She is all the family I have left." Lord Higurashi said quietly. "I will willingly lay down my life if it means my daughter will get to live."

"Such love will be your greatest weakness." King Lykakikdes observed. Lord Higurashi stiffened. "Kagome is all the assurance I need."

"I refuse to let Kagome be a hostage in return for my good behavior."

"If you behave then that won't be a problem would it?"

"I will care Kagome as if she was one of my own. She will be educated with my own daughters while her father is away to handle state affairs."

Lord Higurashi did not like leaving Kagome in a position of vulnerability while he wasn't completely sure of King Lykakides intentions towards them. On the other hand, there were obvious benefits to King Lykakide's proposal. Kagome would be given the finest gowns to wear and the best education offered in the kingdom. She would be able to live in the comfort suitable or even exceeding a Duke's daughter. Guards would be watching her and the princesses every moment. Kagome really could not be any safer except for when she was with him. The most important thing was that he would be able to see her.

Lord Higurashi took a deep breath. "I accept."

King Lykakides nodded. "As the your previous king betrayed you, I will make a concession. You will not need to swear fealty to me." He held up a hand as his councilor began to protest. "Let your actions speak for you. And what will be your first move as the new spymaster of this realm?"

Lord Higurashi met his gaze steadily.

"To deal with the current spymaster and remove all the spies of my former king."

...


	3. Chapter 3

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 3**_

And so that was what happened. Kagome was raised with King Lykakide's own children. Kagome knew the princesses as her sisters and the princes as her brothers. Kagome muddled through the intricacies of embroidery and society side by side with the princesses. She picked through the murky territories of politics and geography with the princes. Throughout her childhood, Kagome was never lacking in playmates. She grew up with a want for nothing and her every wish was fulfilled beyond imagining.

Memories of the night faded with time and she got used to having only a father. She adapted to his frequent absences for long periods of time and was considered a part of the royal family. Any time one of the noble children asked her where her father went, her reply would always be "on the King's business." For her, that was enough. Kagome was content and her biggest concern in life was figuring out why her numbers didn't add up.

King Lykakides allowed his daughters freedom that most of the highborn ladies did not enjoy. He did not enforce any demands upon them except for one thing. He insisted all the princesses learned self-defense. His daughters were encouraged to choose one type of weapon to keep by their side at all times. With her acceptance into the royal brood, King Lykakides ordered Kagome to be trained immediately. Most of the prin cesses had chosen the _tessen_, the bladed fan, which doubled as a weapon and an ornamental fan. The youngest had chosen throwing and fighting daggers which could be easily concealed under court robes. More intricate weaponry included specially made poisoned darts that could be disguised as intricate hair accessories. All of these weapons were illegal for anyone not of royal blood to carry on their person. Kagome was an exception.

When presented with an impressive array of weapons, Kagome was unable to choose one. The weapons master gave Kagome two days to make her choice. At the end of two days, Kagome was no closer to making a descision. Exasperated, the weapons master put her through all of the basic training of the weapons suitable for a lady. He planned to let Kagome's natural instincts make the decision for her.

Within a week, Kagome showed alarming proficiency at all the weapons that she had been introduced to. Despite her late start, she quickly surpassed the princesses in all of the close contact weapons such as throwing daggers to the _tessen_. The weapons master brought this matter to the attention of King Lykakides. Presenting Kagome's unusual talent to the King, he asked for permission to continue to advance her training to include _all weapons._ Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, King Lykakides gave his blessing.

On Lord Higarashi's next return from business, Kagome gave him the shock of his life. Having returned home with a gift for Kagome, he did not expect to walk into one of her self-training sessions. Lord Higurashi was vaguely aware of the king's decree for her to be trained but he had never thought that he would actually see a sword in his gentle daughter's hand. His surprise grew to a calculating sense of purpose as he watched her work through her exercises with skill uncommon to those her age. Thus, he began training her whenever he was home.

And so Kagome's training progressed. With the introduction to the glaive and the sword, she began sparring with the princes. As the princesses matured, they spent less time weapon training and more time on the studies of court etiquette. Kagome continued to advance her studies in both areas. She dedicated all her spare time to mastering the arts.

At the age of 16, Kagome was able to beat all of the princes in any weapon of their choice. She began sparring with the weapons master himself and the king's elite bodyguards. Kagome was able to hit a bull's eye had 300 paces and from horseback. She could throw daggers blindfolded at a dummy and be able to make a "kill" every time. Any budding signs of arrogance and inflated egos where viciously beat down from Kagome. Her father fondly referred to her as "his little Amazon" while King Lykakides continually joked about making her the captain of his guards when she was older.

Kagome was also a master chess player. By the courtesy of her tutors, she knew the etiquette, history and customs of all 4 kingdoms. Kagome found all knowledge worth knowing and seized onto onto every new lesson with the thirst of a parched man in a desert. The only thing that Kagome could not master were numbers. She could fluently speak all 8 main languages and 6 of the dialects, read and write 4 different dead languages but she could not for the life of her make sense of the numbers given to her. She could do add, subtract, times and divide but anything more complicated was beyond her comprehension. Despite the combined efforts of all the royal tutors, no one could demystify the workings of numbers for Kagome. One even tried to teach algebra and geometry as a language. And failed miserably. But the man was clapped on the back by his fellow tutors for his creativity.

Prince Kouga, the heir to the throne, loved to tease her about her one failing. In return, Kagome would offend his young egotistical sense of pride by rubbing it in his face that he couldn't beat _a girl._ From the day of Kagome's arrival to the castle, they were like fire and water. The smallest thing would set them off. It was a common occurrence to find the pair in some part of the palace hurling insults at each other. Before long, their shouting matches would progress into an all out fight regardless of who was in the room with them. Servants would see them coming down a corridor together and immediately flee the other way. It got to so bad that King Lykakides ordered them to keep their fighting in the training yard or be punished with cleaning out the chicken coop and the stables for _months_. Now more often than not, it led to a very messy sparring match in the training yard. As Prince Kouga had no qualms about fighting dirty against Kagome, the outcome was often uncertain.

The first time that she was taken to task for fighting in the palace, her father brought her home to punish her. Unable to look her father in the eye, Kagome hung her head guiltily and waited for her punishment. Her father had simply stared at her without saying a single word. She could feel his eyes staring at the top of her head. The silence was oppressing and stifling. Kagome very much rather he yelled at her. Just as she was about to burst out and apologize, he broke the silence. Oozing parental disapproval, her father asked, "Did you give him a black eye?"

"Yes." Kagome replied guiltily.

"Give him two next time. I taught you better than that."

Kagome looked up in surprise.

"Aren't you going to yell at me?" she asked . "Tell me that this is not how a lady should act and -"

"Do you want me to?"

"It was make more sense!"

Kagome frowned at him.

"Well...just don't get caught next time."

Kagome rolled her eyes and then smiled sweetly.

"Does this mean I have my lord father's approval to solidly trounce Kouga?"

"Yes, you do but you will never hear me admit that in front of Lykakides."

"Yes. father."

"Now come along. I have something to show you."

After that, her father proceeded to teach her all the dirty moves he had in his repertoire. It kept Kouga solidly on his backside for the next half a year or so.

...

Kagome breathed heavily as she watched her opponent across the ring. Her own footwork mirrored his as they warily circled each other. She assumed a casual upright stance with her _naginata_ held loosely in her hand. The blade trailed in the sand and left a deep groove behind her. Sweat ran down her face and spotted the sand beneath her feet. One drop hung precariously on her eyelash but she didn't dare lift a hand to wipe it. Both of them were just waiting for such an opening to spring.

Kagome blinked and the sweat dripped into her eye. She blinked twice rapidly to dispel the burning droplet but that was all it took. Her opponent flew forward with an overhead downward strike. She flung up sand and quickly brought up her _naginata_ to crossblock his strike. Her opponent grunted as he received a face full of sand. Ignoring the extreme discomfort of having sand stuck to his sweaty face, he pressed his advantage. He used his heavier stature to force Kagome to her knees. Aware of the simplest tactic any of her opponents could employ against her, Kagome bent her knee and neatly ducked underneath his glaive with a deft twist of her own weapon. With the unexpected absence of resistance, the man pitched forward. Kagome helped his descent with a prod of the blunt end of her _naginata_. The grown man was airborne for a few seconds before flying first face into the sand.

Faster than she would have credited him, he flipped over and somersaulted into his battle stance. He growled at her as she fought to suppress her laughter. Unable to successfully suppress it, she snorted at the sight of his face completely caked with sand. He spat out the grainy molecules and glared at her through his mask of sand.

She was still laughing when he sprung forward with another strike. As the shafts of their weapons crossed, he leaned forward to growl at her, "I'll be getting the last laugh."

"You should really see yourself. You're really scary covered in sand." she quipped back at him as she disengaged her _naginata_ with a backward spring.

"I'm going to beat you black and blue until even your own father won't recognize you."

"And I'm going to make you eat even more sand since you looking so dashing covered in it. What would your king say when he sees his captain made into a sand fondue by a little girl?" she taunted him.

With another growl, he stalked forward to make good on his threat.

...

Kagome was humming as she polished her _naginata._ Hair still damp from her bath, she kept it in a high ponytail to dry. She had soaked her aches in the hot spring for half an hour before returning to the training hall. Eri, King Lykakide's captain, had made good on his threat. He landed many heavy blows on her that already started to bruise by the time she reached the baths. As they were just sparring, their blades had been blunted with training guards. Unblunted, Kagome would have earned a few more dashing scars.

Even so, he was unable to make her yield. Kagome just gritted her teeth at the pain and resolved to make herself to dodge and block faster next time. Most importantly, he wasn't able to make her touch the ground. Kagome was able to make him fall two more times before the end of their sparring match. The first was a beautiful sweep to the knees with her _naginata_ that sent him crashing on his posterior end. The second one was a move she learned from her father. She had swept him off his feet with a nasty ankle hook. In a formal fight, Kagome would have been given a foul for scoring on her opponent with something other than her weapon. Even so, she would have been awarded many more points from his other "clean falls". She had been practicing with Eri for over a year already. He was more than familiar with all her style of fighting and was able to predict most of her moves. Within a week, she was forced to fall back onto what Eri denounced as "fighting dirty" to stay ahead of him. As like with Kouga, she was winning most of their bouts by gradually incorporating her father's "tactics of the highest caliber".

Watching the tall man head towards to baths grumbling to himself, she was quite pleased with how her new technique had worked out. She still had many other tricks in her repertoire to test out on the poor man. It wasn't her fault that Eri was too rigid in his thinking to come up with new twists in his fighting. Kagome mentally shrugged. There was no honour in a true fight. Only _survivors_. Her father had told her at an early age that there was no way she could win against men in a contest of brute strength. At 5'5" she was taller than most women but still much shorter than the shortest man in the King's Elite Bodyguards. No matter how much she trained, she would never possess the strength of a grown man. Instead, she was told to use the advantages available to a woman. As she was smaller, Kagome was quicker and be more agile than the most men. She was more flexible and nimble on her feet. Her father had actually hired acrobats to teach her. After they were done with her, Kagome could do flips, cartwheels and somersaults with the best of them.

Even her weapons were specially made for her. She could use the heavier weapons with ease but her father had found weapons more suitable to her stature on his many travels. The _naginata_ that she used to spar with Eri this morning was one of her favourites. Instead of the heavier sword favoured by the men of the court, she trained with the sidesword and a smaller version of the traditional katana. Kagome had many more exotic weapons stored in her private weapon gallery back in her suite of rooms.

Giving her favourite weapon one more swipe with the polishing cloth, she threw the cloth in the dirty collection pail and put the weapon back into it's case. Once she was satisfied that her _naginata_was secured in its bed of red satin, she latched the lid closed and tucked it under her arm. Humming a cheerful tune, she set off in the direction of tutoring rooms.

"Lady Kagome!" cried a loud male voice.

Kagome turned and narrowed missed nailing one of the men coming from the

opposite direction in the groin.

"WHOA Kagome! Careful with that box!" exclaimed Prince Layel as he flattened himself against the wall to avoid getting hit in the family jewels. "You're dangerous with that box!"

"Sorry!" Kagome apologized with a blush staining her cheeks.

"Looks like you're as clumsy off out of the Pit as you are in it." he taunted.

The Pit was the slang name that they christened the sand pit where everyone went to spar. The dark flush faded as suddenly as it appeared. Kagome flipped her case up vertically and propped her elbow up on it.

"Clumsy in the Pit am I?" she drawled lazily.

"Damn right." he confirmed.

"Looks like someone forgot the outcome of the last time we sparred. Someone ended up eating sand like Eri this morning." she smirked. "Or maybe someone needs reminding."

Layel slowly flushed red. "I don't remember anything like that."

"Let me refresh your memory." Kagome tapped her chin. "Tomorrow at 9am then?"

She flashed a devilish grin his way. Layel paled. Without waiting for him to reply, she turned to the short, redfaced messenger who was attempting to catch his breath.

"Yo-ur- fa-"

"Breathe." coaxed Kagome. "There's no rush."

The young man took a deep breath and straightened.

"Your father wanted you to know that he is home and would like to see you as soon as possible."

Kagome beamed and then frowned.

"I have lessons though."

"He had already sent a note to your tutors."

"Perfect." Kagome smiled.

"Thank you. I'll be going to see him right now then."

He turned to leave and then hesitated.

"Do you have any other message for him?"

"Oh no! You don't have to give him a message. I'm going to go see him right now. You can return to your duties."

"Oh." The poor man looked relieved. "Thank you, my lady."

Kagome looked around for Layel but he had already disappeared. Tucking her case back under her arm, she stuck her head into the salle. Just as she thought, he was practicing his sword strokes in front of the mirror.

"Grip too high up and foot angled too much." she corrected from the door.

Kagome startled Layel so much that he dropped his sword and almost cut off his toe. Kagome winced. Layel spat off a string of curses.

"You better not let the Alberich see that. He'll skin you alive for denting his new hardwood floors."

She jerked her head towards the deep dent the tip of his sword created. Layel blanched. The gruff weapons master insisted on his students addressing him as "My Lord." or "Sir". As Kagome was his favourite pupil, she got away with calling him by his first name. Kagome saw the weapons master more of an uncle than the fire-breathing dragon that struck fear in the hearts of everyone else. She could literally see Layel sweating at the thought of the weapons master taking him to task.

Kagome popped out of the room and then stuck her head back in. Layel jumped.

"WHAT NOW?" he said irritably.

"Be careful that you don't chop off that royal toe. You'll need all your toes and more tomorrow at 9am."

"Alright already! Go terrorize Kouga and leave me in peace!"

Kagome smiled at his groan. Layel resumed his practice with new fervor. She watched him for a few more moments before leaving the salle. Tomorrow's match should be very interesting. Humming a jaunty tune, Kagome shifted the case to a more comfortable position and set off for her father's suite.

...


	4. Chapter 4

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 4**_

Her father's set of rooms was quite far away from her own. Her rooms set in the more secluded parts of the castle in the royal wing. King Lykakides had accepted her as one of his own and gave her one of the unoccupied suites usually reserved for a princess. Guards were positioned in front of their rooms during all times. The other wings of the palace were patrolled by shifts of guards. After years at the palace, she knew all of the guards on duty by name.

Kagome nodded to Kist, the passing guard, before slipping past the procession of servants to enter her father's room. Used to the flurry of activity and messy unpacking that happened each time her father came home, Kagome placed her case on the only available space left on the table.

"Father!" she called out.

Her father stuck his head out of one of the bedrooms.

"Kagome!" he said warmly before stepping out with his arms open.

Kagome ran over and jumped into his arms.

"OOF!" Her father staggered. "You're getting heavy. I think someone gained a few pounds!"

Kagome stepped back and feigned an offended look. Her father had demonstrated on occasion that he could easily heft a grown man over his shoulder and throw him several feet away.

"And you know that it's not gentlemanly to tell a lady that she has gained a few pounds even if she had indulged on a little too much on sweets. You would get called out in the Eastern lands for such an insult." She sniffed.

"Of course, you're not a lady! You're my boy!" Joked her father. Kagome snorted. "And that proves my point."

"Just because I don't wear lace and ten thousand layers of skirts." Kagome said patiently. "Doesn't mean I'm a boy."

Lord Higurashi raised an eye down Kagome's outfit of tight fitting breeches and an overtunic. "About that. I don't remember boy clothes looking so scandalous." He tapped a finger on his chin. "How about you put some flowing robes over those breeches."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "You've never had a problem with breeches before. Don't tell me that you're going to start getting all stuffy and traditional with the "women should wear dresses and spend all day embroidering shirts for their husbands" act?"

He eyed her. "Maybe I should or I will have to beat away all those boys with a stick."

"What boys?" She cried. "You just said that I am your boy."

"Yeaaah..you're _my_ boy."

Kagome crossed her arms.

"Pah!" He threw up his hands. "We'll agree to disagree."

Kagome sniffed. Her father smiled. "Come here darling. I brought you another present."

Despite her ire, she was curious. Her father draped an arm around her shoulders and steered her towards the bedroom. He jumped forward and dug around in one of the many trunks that his servants moved into his room.

"Where is it..where is it?" he muttered to himself. "I put it right here...damned servants.."

Kagome grinned at the growing pile of clothes flying around the room. She could barely see her father in the storm of exotic clothing. She raised an eyebrow at what seemed to be a dress.

"Umm...father?"

He paused in his searching. "Yes?"

"Is that a dress?"

He turned around and flashed her a wide smile. "AH! There it is! I thought since you're a woman now, you should have a proper gown for the Lykakide's upcoming birthday."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "What wrong with what I usually wear?"

Kagome often went to the balls and banquets in a set of a soft satin tunic and matching pantaloons. Several trips ago, her father had brought her a elaborately embroidered over robe done in gold and silver threads on a sea of black silk. She threw that on top of whatever she was wearing and was good to go. Her fellow sisters had developed an extreme fondness for corsets and layers. Kagome could still remember an instance where Lia, short for Anthalia, had gotten stuck in the door because her skirts were too wide. It had taken three footmen to free her. After much laughter, Lykakides put a forth a decree to limit the width of a woman's skirts to one that could comfortably pass through a door. Lia had gotten much teasing from her other sisters who found a loophole in the decree by going through the door _sideways._

_"Well..._It's always nice..to have something new to wear!" her father finished with a bright smile.

Kagome gave him the characteristic Higurashi eyebrow. He raised his own back at her.

"For a diplomat, you aren't very eloquent."

"What do you want me to say? That you've been wearing the same thing to banquets for the last three years?" he said defensively.

"Keep digging that hole. You could have said that my birthday was coming up and that it was a present."

Her father rolled his eyes.

"As if you would accept that one."

Kagome thought about it.

"You're right. I wouldn't have." She eyed him. "I assume you have a better birthday present for me."

"What if I said no?" He asked innocently.

"Then I'll challenge you to a sparring match right now." Kagome said sweetly back.

Her father's eyes twinkled with mirth. "Is my little wee babe challenging her old man to a match?"

"Let's see who's the little wee babe after I plant your butt into a rocking chair. _Permanently._" She retorted.

"Oooooh. Big talk, little one."

"Let's go now! I warmed up earlier by wiping the floor with Eri.' She challenged.

"That's because Eri is a big purring pussycat compared to me." He snorted.

"But Eri is big,_ strong _and _YOUNG_." Kagome looked at him with wide, innocent brown eyes. "While those years must weigh so heavily on you, old man."

Kagome smirked.

"That's IT. I'll show you who is OLD." He growled.

He strode to one of the open trunks and grabbed his trusty sword. "Let's go."

"Gladly."

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

"Excuse me."

The same messenger from earlier was standing by the door.

"Hello again."

Kagome smiled at him.

"Greetings, Lady Higurashi."

The blushing young man sketched a bow. Lord Higurashi coughed.

"My sincere apologies, my Lord!" The young man squeaked.

"What's the message?"

The man turned bright red and stammered.

"Slow down and take your time," coaxed Kagome.

"Thank you, Lady Higurashi."

He took a deep breath.

"I have two messages. The first one is to Lord Higurashi. The King requests your presence in throne room. The second is for Lady Higurashi. Prince Kouga is wonderin.-" The messenger coughed delicately. "Where are you?"

"There is no way that he would have phrased it that nicely. It must have been somewhere alone the lines of "Where in the bloody hell are you?" Kagome remarked dryly.

The messenger smiled sheepishly. He turned to Lord Higurashi.

"Tell His Majesty that I will be with him shortly."

The messenger nodded and turned back to Kagome.

"Do you have a reply Lady HIgurashi?"

"Not one fit for hearing. Thank you."

She smiled at him and the man messenger blushed. Lord Higurashi cleared his throat. The poor man jumped and bowed his way out.

"You're too nice to him."

"The messenger?" Kagome said absently.

"Yes. The poor boy is practically in love with you."

"What?"

"Him and Kouga."

"Kouga?" Kagome burst out laughing. "He probably wants to get a good laugh from watching me muddle my way through my numbers."

"I'm not so sure about that."

"Oh, come on. I've known him for almost all my life. You really can't take anyone seriously when you keep remembering what he looked like with that hideous bowl cut." she grinned mischievously. "I might even be able to find a painting to blackmail him with."

"That's right, my angel. Hit him where it hurts the most."

He ruffled her bangs. Kagome blew up at them exasperatedly.

"Yes, father. I need to go now. Dinner at 7?"

"Whatever works best for you."

"7, it is."

Kagome turned to leave.

"Don't be late!" he called after her. "Kagome!"

"Yes?"

"Flowing robes are quite dashing."

Kagome looked to the sky for guidance and walked out of the room.

...

Kagome took the long way to her mathematics lesson. Out of all her subjects, this was the only one she dreaded. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make sense of her numbers. As if the fates were conspiring against her, numbers called to Kouga. He practically _spoke_ numbers. It annoyed the living hell out of her. Since all of her tutors had given up on Kagome, Kouga had volunteered himself as her tutor.

It irked her to have him in a position of higher power but she grudgingly admitted that he had more patience with her than her previous tutors. It had certainly surprised her that Kouga had patience and tolerance when it came to her. Lately, Kouga had not been rising to her taunts like he usually did. It was weird. Almost as weird as finding Kouga by the door tapping his foot as she rounded the corner.

"You're late." He growled.

"My father is back." She replied.

"You could have had the decency to tell me!" He pointed at his pocket watch. "I've been waiting for over an hour!"

"My apologies. I was told that father sent you a note. It must have been lost in _translation_."

"Whatever." Kouga clapped his hands. "Let's get started!"

Kagome sighed and sat at the table.

_**Fifteen minutes later,**_

"My head is hurts," Kagome complained.

"That's because you're making this harder than it is." Kouga said calmly. "This equation is quite easy."

And proceeded to solve the equation that she had been working on for the last 10 minutes in three steps. Kagome slowly banged her head on the table.

"Come on. Let's try this again."

Kouga grabbed a piece of new paper and jotted down another equation. He put it beside Kagome who had her head down on the table.

"They don't make sense," said Kagome with her voice muffled by the table.

She lifted her head and stared at him forlornly.

"My head still hurts, my back hurts and even my fingers are starting to hurt from gripping the pen so time. And the worst thing is that I still can't solve a problem."

"Then sit up straighter."

Kagome sighed and sat up. Kouga hopped out of his chair and massaged her shoulders. Kagome stiffened.

"Relax," admonished Kouga. "And work on your problems."

Kagome forced herself to relax. She tried to focus on the problems but she was so very conscious of Kouga's hands on her shoulder. He was so close that she could feel the heat of his body. Kouga was...

"Are you _sniffing_ me?" Demanded Kagome before twisting out of his grasp.

Kouga didn't even have the grace to look ashamed.

"You smell nice." he stated.

"ARGHHHH! How am I supposed to concentrate when you do stupid things like that? You're supposed to be helping with math not SNIFFING me!" Kagome shouted at him.

"Alright! Alright!" Kouga put up his hands in placation as Kagome continued to glare at him. "I'll keep my hands to myself!"

He sat down in his chair and propped up a leg. "Do proceed."

Kagome sent him another glare for good measure and huffed. She picked up her pencil and stared at the problem. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kouga scoot his chair over to sit closer to her. Kagome ignored him and renewed her focus on the problem at hand. Not before long, she sensed him hovering over her shoulder to look at her work. Kagome gritted her teeth and resolved to ignore him. Her resolve wavered as he hovered so close that she could feel his breath on her ear. She slammed her pencil down on the table.

"What's wrong with you today?" She let him have it. "How can ANYONE work with you hovering so close like that?"

Kouga gave her a look that made her feel like she kicked a puppy. "A better question is what's wrong with you today? You're even nastier than usual."

"NASTIER THAN USUAL?" She snarled. "I'LL SHOW YOU NASTY."

She lunged for his throat. Kouga jumped out of his chair and held his hands up.

"WHOA! I really shouldn't have said that." Kouga scented the air. "I should have realized that it was your time of the month and left you-"

"TIME OF MY MONTH? HOW DARE YOU!" She hissed out disbelievingly. "I'LL PAINT THESE WALLS RED WITH YOUR BLOOD."

"Calm -" Kouga dove off to the side and grabbed her by the waist as she flew past him. "DOWN!"

Kagome struggled against his hold and jabbed her elbow into his stomach. Learning from past experience, Kouga grimly clamped her arms to her midriff. Kagome stomped the heel of her boots down on his instep. Kouga cursed and let her go. Kagome whirled around with her hands up and ready for battle. She breathed heavily as she glared Kouga from a distance. Her hair had escaped out of the loose braid she tied after her bath during their struggle.

"Calm...down." He repeated.

He carefully pulled out a chair and gestured to it.

"Relax and have a seat, Kagome."

"I don't think so you bastard," she snarled.

"We went over this before. " He sighed. "I apologize for whatever I did wrong. Now can you please calm down?"

Kagome straightened and gingerly took a seat.

"Now that wasn't so hard."

Kouga took a seat beside her. Kagome moved her chair back.

"Can you please tell me what I did wrong?"

"What's wrong? Everything is wrong!" She muttered. "You were like trying to fucking scent mark me!"

Kouga sighed. "I'm sorry if I haven't made it obvious."

"Made what obvious?" Kagome cried. "You're not rising to my taunts anymore. You're driving me insane! Oh my God!" She looked at him in horror. "You have even been holding doors for me. You're treating me like one of your ladies." she accused.

"My sincere apologies for causing you distress." Kouga said solemnly.

"THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!" Kagome stood up and started pacing agitatedly. She pointed a finger at him. "You would have never apologized for something like that especially when I picked the fight. Never mind using flowery language like "my sincere apologies." You sound like one of those court dandies!"

"What you haven't realized is we're both adults now and we have to start acting like one. We can't fight like we are little kids anyways."

Kagome stared at him disbelievingly. "Are you calling me immature?"

"No. NO! Don't twist my words. I don't want to fight."

"He must have a fever." Kagome muttered to herself. "Don't want to fight."

Kouga smiled sardonically at her. "I'm perfectly healthy. I really don't want to fight with you. Only lately, have I realized that I should start acting more like the heir to the throne."

"And what prompted such a change of heart?" Kagome asked sarcastically.

"You."

"Me? What would I have anything to do with you acting weird?"

"Everything."

Kouga stood up and walked over to where Kagome was standing. Kagome watched in disbelief as he took her hand and knelt to the floor on one knee.

"Kagome Sakura Higurashi. Would you do me the honour of being my wife?"

...


	5. Chapter 5

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 5**_

"Whoaaa. WHOA!" Kagome snatched her hand out of Kouga's grasp. "How did we go from numbers to marriage? You're joking right?" she laughed nervously.

Kouga straightened off the floor and watched her.

"You're not joking are you?" she said weakly. "Oh my God."

Kagome collapsed back onto the chair and put her head in her hands. Kouga walked over and crouched in front of her.

"Kagome. I've been in love with you since the day you arrived. I've never been so serious about anything in my life. Ah what the hell. I even have the ring right here!"

Kouga fumbled around his pockets for the ring. Kagome hurriedly stopped him.

"Don't Kouga. I know you are serious."

She raised her eyes to meet his serious brown ones.

"Just say yes."

"I can't. I really can't. I never saw you in that way. You've always been an older brother to me."

Kouga looked at her with sincere eyes. "I understand. Just give me a chance to prove to you that I am the one for you."

Kagome bit her lip and stared past him.

"Oh! I'm so sorry Kouga! I have promised to have dinner with my father. It's 6:50 already!"

She stood up so abruptly that she knocked Kouga off his feet.

"Kagome!" he cried.

"Sorry! Got to go!"

And then she was out of the door. Kouga picked himself off the ground and ran to the door.

"Think about it!" he shouted down the hallway but she was already gone.

...

Kagome ran all the way to her suites. She didn't even stop to say a hello to the startled Karl and Alerric on duty in front of her rooms. As soon she was in her bedroom, she slammed the door and slid down into a heap.

"Oh my God." she muttered to herself.

She still couldn't believe that Kouga proposed to her. She had spent all of her childhood tormenting and fighting with him. Kagome had told him the truth. She had never seen him as anything more than an annoying older brother.

Kagome admitted that Kouga was quite handsome and was much sought after by the ladies. One lady had even declared in public that she would throw herself off her balcony if Kouga didn't return her love. She still couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that he was in love with _her_. _No_ she corrected herself mentally. Kouga _fancied _himself to be in love with her. He must have eaten some bad mushrooms for his midday meal.

A loud knock on her door sent her sprawling on the carpet in surprise.

"Lady Kagome?" asked Tara, her maid. "Are you in here?"

Kagome quickly picked herself off the floor and sat primly on her bed.

"Yes. I am. You may enter."

Tara entered with a towel and a basin of water. "Hello my lady. We must get you ready for dinner! We only have 5 minutes!"

"No need, Tara. I'll just go like this."

"You can't, my lady!" cried Tara. Her maid blushed under Kagome's raised eyebrow. "Forgive me for my outburst but your father, Lord Higurashi, requested you wear a gown for dinner tonight. In fact, he sent one over."

Kagome eyed the sea of lace erupting out of her wardrobe. What was wrong with the men in her life? They were acting more aggravating than usual today.

"I don't think so. Find the pale yellow one."

Tara wrung her hands agitatedly. "But my lady, your father ordered -."

"He's not the one who has to wear it. He just requested a gown for tonight so I will wear one.

"Yes, my lady, but will you at least wear a corset?"

"No."

Tara ended up winning the battle for that one. Kagome was late to dinner, as usual.

...

The first thing Kagome's father said to her as Piers, his personal servant, seated her at the table was: "You're late."

"What do you expect?" She scoffed. "I wasn't planning on you imposing a dress code for tonight."

"Speaking of dresses... what was wrong with the one I sent you?"

"Too much lace," Kagome said dismissively. "You can't run in that much lace."

"And why would you need to run at a dinner with me?"

"You never know." Kagome took a sip of her soup.

"It's do-able, you know."

"What?"

"You CAN run in that much lace. In fact, it should cushion you if you decide to fall onto your face."

"And you would know how?" She asked, spearing a stalk of asparagus.

"I just do." He smiled and steepled his hands. "By the by, what is this about Kouga proposing to you this afternoon?"

Kagome choked on the asparagus she'd been swallowing, thumped herself hard in the chest and drained her glass of wine. Piers hurried forwards to refill it.

Her father lifted a brow.

"You should really take it easy on the wine."

Kagome gasped and sputtered. "Are you trying to kill me? Where did you hear about that?"

"I have my sources." He grinned mischievously at her. "Don't you know I have eyes on you at all times?"

Kagome gave him the eyebrow and began to cut into her steak.

"Then I assume you know the answer?"

"Apparently there was no answer."

"Hah!" Kagome waved her knife at him. "Your sources were wrong."

"Do put that knife down," he said mildly, and took a sip of his wine. "You might take someone's eye out. So, what was your answer then?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"Because I'm your father and it's no fun to keep something like this to yourself," he coaxed.

Kagome wiped her lips on her napkin, and nodded her thanks to Piers as he took her plate away.

"And what will you trade me for this fact?"

Her father burst into laughter. "How mercenary of you, angel. You're learning fast."

"Only from the best."

"Well," he began, "I made you your favourite dessert: hazelnut chocolate truffle."

"You mean Piers made it."

"... Maybe."

"Do tell me, because if you did make it, I'm not going to eat it!"

He responded to her joke with a mock-wounded look, and held up a hand to Piers.

"Don't give it to her till she answers my question."

Piers raised an eyebrow in reply and slid a plate of the truffle in front of Kagome.

"Eat assured that I made it with my own hands. I'd never let Lord Higurashi anywhere near the kitchens."

Kagome laughed, while her father shot Piers a sour look.

"I'll have you know that I CAN cook."

"Certainly, my lord," Piers smoothly replied and moved off to the side.

"Pah. Impudent servants, an upstart for a daughter - all of you are trying to send me to an early grave."

Kagome took a bite from her dessert and melted. There was nothing in the world quite like Piers' hazelnut chocolate truffle. The silky-smooth chocolate and creamy hazelnut treated her tongue to sensual bliss. Too soon, she was finished. She set her fork down on the plate for Piers to take away, looking up at him hopefully.

"Sorry," Piers said with a smile, "but there's no more left."

"Leave the poor man alone, Kagome." Her father was polishing off his own dessert. "He'll make more for you tomorrow night."

He pushed back in his chair and stood up.

"Brandy?" Kagome's voice held a hopeful note.

"I should really curtail your fondness for alcohol," he said dryly.

"But then you wouldn't have such a delightful companion to keep you company."

Kagome followed him into his library. She shook out her skirts and dropped into one of the armchairs by the fireplace.

"I should've known that the only reason you come to drink is for my vintage liquor."

"Of course. Why else?"

He peered into his cabinet of priceless liquors and selected one, before displaying the decanter of brandy for her appraisal.

"This, my dear, is a century aged brandy provided generously from the private cellars of Lord Deptchire."

Kagome propped her elbow up on the armrest. "Another bet?"

"Hmm..." He cleared his throat and changed the subject. "Anyway, from your lack of reaction and queries regarding my arranging a wedding, I assume that you told Kouga 'no'."

"Precisely."

"Why?"

"Firstly, my lineage isn't-"

Her father shot her a sharp look.

"I never want to hear you say that again. Your lineage is impeccable, and your blood is as - if not more - blue than most royalty! Kouga would be lucky to have you as a wife."

"If you say so," she said under her breath. "The second reason is simply because I don't see him that way."

"It IS an advantageous match."

Kagome didn't reply to that.

Her father grabbed a leather case from the cabinet and produced a long, silver needle. He pulled the glass stopper from the brandy and dipped the needle in. Kagome watched in silence as he swirled it round the bottom of the decanter. When he pulled it out, he held it up to the light, where it shone brightly.

"It's safe."

He wiped the needle clean on a handkerchief and returned the set to the cabinet. He poured each of them a glass of brandy and set the decanter off to the side. He handed her a glass, which she accepted with a quiet 'thank you', and settled into the armchair opposing her.

"So why did you request that I wear a gown tonight? You've never had a problem with the way I dress before."

Her father sighed and put down his glass. He leaned over to take her hand.

"On my trip, I was invited to the wedding of a close friend's daughter. His daughter was seventeen. She looked so happy and in love with her groom. I remembered then that you and she were of the same age. You're no longer a child, but a young woman on the cusp of adulthood."

"Why are you telling me this now?"

"I'm telling you because you haven't had a mother to raise you, and I think you deserve the choice to become more than what you are right now."

Kagome snorted. "I already made that choice. I've been through all the etiquette lessons, and I know all that a lady needs to know. It's not that I'm ignorant of the rules - it's the fact I choose not to observe them."

She took a gulp of brandy. It burned its way down her throat and pooled in her belly, soothing her with its warmth. There was nothing like a sip of good brandy to clear one's mind...

A curious aftertaste hit her. She grimaced at the flavour of bitter almonds. She'd never had a brandy with such a distinct aftertaste before.

"What do you think?"

"It's weird."

She took another sip and swirled the liquid round her mouth. The taste was still there. Kagome set her glass on the table.

"I've never had a brandy with an aftertaste of bitter almonds before."

Her father frowned. "Bitter almonds?"

He sampled his own brandy. After a moment, he spat it out and threw his glass into the fireplace. Flames shot skywards in a kaleidoscope of red and orange. Kagome blinked. A face was laughing at her from the flames...

Vertigo hit. She fell forwards, knocking over her glass on the way. Her father leaped out of his chair to catch her before she hit the floor.

"How much did you drink?"

"Half a glass or so." Her voice came forth as a whisper.

"Too many poisons taste or smell like bitter almonds." He grabbed her empty glass and sniffed it. "Fuck! It's asperia."

"Sounds fancy," she joked. Her chest burned, but her limbs felt so very relaxed...

"Damn it! Kagome, stay with me!"

He struck her across the face. She barely felt the blow.

"That should've hurt." Now she had begun to slur. "But it didn't."

Her father swore.

"I knew I shouldn't have gotten Tara to lace my corset so tight," she mumbled, and passed into unconsciousness.

...

Kagome was adrift in a sea of chaotic images. She lived through an eternity in a small, dark place, surrounded by the stench of damp wood. She was blind, but she could feel phantom walls pressing hard against her, choking the breath from her lungs.

She died.

She died more than once, and every time she awoke to a new nightmare. Kagome lived through a night of searing flame. Images of a burning mansion crumbling around her. Faces she felt she should recognize but did not know. The ravaged corpse of a pregnant woman. An empty cradle.

She saw the faces of her father, Tara, Kouga, everyone she knew and loved frozen in the grasp of death. Kagome screamed and screamed but could not wake. She lived a thousand lives, suffered a thousand deaths till she couldn't remember her own name...

...

Kagome snapped out of her nightmares to the sound of her own screaming. Hands clutched at her and she slapped them away.

There were voices in her head that wouldn't disappear. Thousands of voices clamouring to be heard, howling for vengeance. Kagome clenched her fists and beat her head.

Pain is good. Pain will make the voices go away.

Hands encircled her wrists and pinned her down. Snarling, she lashed out and threw off her restraints. The voices must be silenced. Kagome screeched and tore at her hair. Pain is good- pain is good-

The hands returned, shackling round her wrists. A heavy body threw itself onto her and flattened her against the mattress. Kagome shrieked in protest. Suffocating darkness. Clawing for freedom. No air. Kagome sobbed and cried for help. She felt a sharp pinch in her thigh and all was blessedly silent.

...

Kagome eased back into consciousness. Slowly, she opened her eyes... and immediately regretted it. Her head felt as though someone were pounding a maul against her skull. She lifted a hand to ensure no one had jammed a rod through her eye, and found that she couldn't. Her arms and legs were secured to the bed. Had she been kidnapped? Panicking, she opened her eyes once more.

The first thing she saw laid her fears to rest. Her haggard father slept in a chair near her bed, the very picture of exhaustion. Even in sleep, deep lines were etched into his face, and his hair bore more gray streaks than she recalled.

Staring at his familiar face, she realized the voices in her head had gone. Still, she recalled flashes of the nightmares she'd lived through: a burning mansion; a dead woman; an empty cradle...

"Lady Kagome?"

The sound of her name startled her from her thoughts. Tara stood by the doorway, with a tray bearing a pitcher of water and a bowl of broth.

"Are you awake?"

"Yes."

Kagome was shocked by the rasping voice that came from her mouth.

"Rest your throat, my lady. I'll get you some water."

Tara set down the tray and hurried over to help Kagome upright.

"Oh!" Tarra eyed the bonds. "I totally forgot." She turned to Kagome's sleeping father and tapped him on the shoulder. Kagome couldn't help her amusement at his mumbling and swatting at Tara's hands.

"Lord Higurashi, please wake up."

He opened an eye. "Yes?"

"Kagome is awake."

Her father bolted from his chair and winced. He rotated his back a few times and straightened.

"Kagome." He touched a hand to her brow. "Your fever broke. Thank God." He pulled a silver cross from his shirt and kissed it. Then, "How do you feel, angel?"

"Not well," she croaked, and laughed.

Her father produced a dagger from his belt and sliced at her bonds. Along with Tara, he propped her up against a mountain of pillows. Tara raised a cup to her lips.

"Why was I tied up?"

"You were delirious and attacked anyone who neared you. What do you remember?"

"More than I want. Did you find out who poisoned me?"

He sighed. "Tara, please leave us alone."

She bobbed a curtsey and left the room. Lord Higurashi followed her to the doorway, popped his head past it and called for Piers.

"Keep an eye on the door and ensure no-one's listening."

Kagome couldn't see Piers from her vantage point, but she heard him mumble his assent. Lord Higurashi closed the door and sat down on her bed.

"Aesperia is a plant found esclusively in the Lands of the West. It's an exceptionally rare thing that grows on the highest mountain peaks. Normally, its poison is harmless to humans, and is only lethal in its first stages of growth. The shoots burrow under layers of ice till it's warm enough to emerge as a mature plant."

"You're deliberately avoiding my question. Who poisoned me?"

Lord Higurashi regarded her steadily. "There's no need for you to know. I swear on my soul that I'll get vengeance for this."

"Why wouldn't I want to know who poisoned me?" Kagome's voice rose. "I almost died!"

"Knowledge is dangerous," he warned, "and once you know something, you can't unlearn it."

"Tell me."

Lord Higurashi sighed, wearing the tear of his 47 years.

"The cultivation of aesperia is an expensive and dangerous procedure. The poison in the shoots lasts only a few days, during the coldest point of the year. Its harvest must be timed precisely. There's no way to tell if the poison is present till the shoot has been distilled. For this reason, asperia is exceptionally rare and jealously guarded by the two people who have the means to possess this poison."

He took a deep breath.

"The first person is me."

Kagome's jaw dropped.

"The second is the Queen of the Western Lands."

...


	6. Chapter 6

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 6**_

"Why would the Queen of the Western Lands want to poison me?" Kagome asked in a quiet voice.

"I don't think she knows you even exist. The poison was intended for me." Lord Higurashi looked away. "I shouldn't have been so careless. They covered the lip of the bottle with poison. That's why the needle came out clean."

"But why would she want to kill you? You're the king's only ambassador."

"Kagome." He took a deep breath and exhaled."That's only what everyone thinks I am." He took her hand, traced a circle on her palm with his thumb. Looking straight into her eyes, Lord Higurashi said, "In reality, I am the king's spymaster."

...

Kagome sucked in her breath. "That's why you've always been gone so long."

He nodded. "I visit other kingdoms in the guise of an ambassador to check up on my spy network. Some information is too delicate to be conveyed through a messenger."

"But what if you're caught?"

Lord Higurashi shrugged. "Torture. Dismemberment. Execution."

Kagome regarded the man before her in a whole new light. She'd never seen this side of her father before. Though she'd always suspected he withheld things from her, Kagome never would've guessed his secret would prove so important.

"... Father?"

"Yes, angel?"

She hesitated. "When I was delirious, I saw... things... that were too vivid not to be real."

"What is it, Kagome?"

"Some images were more vivid than the others. I kept seeing the face of this woman and an empty cradle." She swallowed. "Are these memories? Is this part of my past?"

Her father turned solemn eyes upon her. "Yes, they are. It's time I told you of my history."

...

"When I was six, I was kidnapped by men who'd wanted to hurt my father. They mistook me for my elder brother who was the heir to the title. When they realized they'd taken the wrong son, they sold me to the slave traders. In turn, the traders sold me to an organization called the Dark Assassins."

Kagome gasped.

"I thought they were just a myth to scare children into behaving!"

Her father shook his head.

"The Dark Assassins are as real as you and I. Sadistic bastards who kill without an inkling of remorse who live to torture their victims. It was an ongoing contest between the Assassins to see who could keep their victim alive the longest. Agonized screams were, to their ears, songs of joy. They used their targets as warnings to those who might oppose them. Children, women and the elderly were their favourite prey.

"In their hands, I learned the cruel bite of a lash. I learned a thousand ways to kill a man without bloodying my hands. I learned to maximize suffering through torture and keep my victim alive. The Dark Assassins worshipped pain and blood. Compassion was a weakness and kindness a disease avoided like the plague. Everyone did everything for a reason."

He stopped and looked at Kagome. What he saw in her eyes made him feel decades older than he was.

"I should stop," he whispered, and moved to leave.

"Don't go." Kagome clutched at his sleeve. "Please... tell me the rest."

He hesitated.

"I want to know. I have a right to know."

With a sigh, he sat back down, and wrapped his fingers round her pale hand.

"When you were younger, you always asked me why my left hand was crooked."

Kagome nodded.

"The Dark Assassins had broken that hand so many times it never healed correctly. At the age of thirteen, I'd already killed more men than many soldiers have in war. I was considered a rising star among the newly-trained assassins. The one with the most potential."

Lord Higurashi's eyes darkened with memories of the past.

"In time, I forgot about my past life. I had no family and owned nothing but the clothes on my back. Honour and morality were beaten out of me years ago. 'Assassins have no honour. Only fools can afford such a luxury.' That was the first lesson I learned. They gave us barely enough food to survive. Whenever the hunger pains got too bad, we stole.

"Everyone learned to steal from poorer folk, who were generally easier prey. Those who were caught had a hand cut off by the authorities. Willing to do anything to escape the beatings and the hunger, I rose to the top with a reputation for ruthlessness. Many of the older assassins began to fear me, and the bolder ones urged the guild leader to give me assignments of the highest risk. It was a thinly-veiled ploy to get rid of me.

I was tasked with the assassination of King Inutaisho of the Western Lands."

Kagome's breath caught in her throat.

"It was practically an impossible mission. The king was surrounded day and night by guards, and all knew of his skills as a master swordsman. Some believed he was a demon in disguise. Being young and arrogant, I accepted the assignment. Completion would've promoted me to the highest rank an assassin could obtain within the guild. Failure..." he shook his head. "My youthful fantasies had no room for failure.

"And so I went on my first solo assignment. I never once thought to use the opportunity to scape. The guild had become the centre of my life. I departed with the sole goal of killing Inutaisho. I didn't stop to think about what would happen aftwards. All I cared about was myself.

"I entered the palace with ease. I slit the throats of the guards patrolling the garden before they even suspected my presence. I left their bodies in the bushes and continued on to the balcony looking into his private chambers. There was a light glowing in one of the inner rooms. I was drawn to it like a moth to the flame, and there I found Inutaisho, sitting at his desk with stacks of paperwork towering over him. I drew my dagger and threw it at his exposed back.

"Without looking, he caught the dagger by the blade. With two fingers."

Kagome shared the awe in his voice.

"Shaken, I reached for my second dagger but my hand never touched it. With a speed that my eyes couldn't follow, he was out of his chair and pinning me up against the wall by my throat. With smoldering red eyes and fangs as long as my forefinger snarling in my face, I knew that the rumours ere true. Just as I stared down my demise, his transformation receded and left a deceptively beautiful man in its place. Looking surprised, he released his stranglehold and stepped back.

"He looked at me thoughtfully and asked, 'Why are you here?'

"I was dumbfounded. What did he expect me to say? I'd already made one attempt on his life. If this was the end, I decided that I would leave this world with dignity.

"I told him the truth. I said, 'To kill you.'

"He shook his head and asked again, 'Why are you here?'

"I repeated my answer.

"Ever so patient, he said, 'Why are you here? What motivates a man enough to claim a life?'

"To my astonishment, he turned his back and returned to the chair he vacated. He leveled clear golden eyes at me that seemed to see straight into my tainted soul.

"'Fear,' I said. 'Power. Greed.'

"He repeated, 'What motivates you?'

"Looking down at the blood dried beneath my fingernails, I thought about his question. Why was I there? All I had to gain was a promotion in the guild. It was an unstable position and holding it would proclaim me a target for those who envied me. The number of kills I made determined my worth. At that moment I realized there was no true meaning to my life; I was merely an instrument to take others'.

"'Nothing,' I whispered, falling to my knees. 'Absolutely nothing.'

"With my head lowered, I sensed him walking towards me. A wave of his hand had all the weapons concealed on my person clattering to the ground. I watched him with emotionless eyes as his clawed hand came to rest upon my neck.

"'As the price for the lives that you took tonight, you will enter my service. You will take their posts and stand by my side to guard me. Furthermore, are you willing to become my right hand and take vengeance on those who sent you here to die?'

"I looked at the offered hand before my face. It was undoubtedly an aristocrat's hand, fine-boned and slender. But I could see the hard calluses formed on his skin from years of training in swordsmanship. The thing that kept my attention most was his signet ring. The proud crest of the snarling dog framed by the moon. The very emblem of his kingship. Was I escaping one cage to enter another?

"Yet I decided to put my life in his hands.

"I dedicated the following years to hunting down the Dark Assassins. I was intimately acquainted with their secrets and systems. They stood no chance against my hatred and the wrath of Inutaisho. I took revenge on every single assassin that had made my life miserable, sparing only the newest recruits. I gave them the choice to start a new life or enter Inutaisho's service as a spy or assassin. Those who had a home to return to chose to return."

Lord Higurashi paused to look at Kagome.

"This is how the Dark Assassins came to be a myth. I served Inutaisho faithfully as his right hand man, helping maintan his reign from the shadows. I was not only his bodyguard, but his friend and confidant.

"Then I met your mother.

"Akiko was the most amazing woman I'd ever known. Beautiful, kind, and gentle. She always had a good thing to say about anyone." He chuckled. "She was so gentle that she wouldn't let the maids kill the spiders in her manor. She caught them and released them outside. But whenever anyone she loved was threatened, she was formidable as a tigress defending her cubs.

"I met her for the first time in one of the castle halls. She'd run straight into me. Instead of cowering in fear or running off screaming, she apologized and smiled at me. Even as her friends dragged her hastily away, her smile never faltered. Again and again, we ran into each other around the castle. First, we began to talk, and soon we were arranging private meetings. I had never expected her to give me the time of day. I was a nobody with a dark past and she was the daughter of a marquess. Her father was ambitious and used his daughter's beauty like a weapon, a tool to carve their way into the ranks of royalty. In his eyes, I was a tainted commoner unworthy for his daughter to so much as tread on. But beyond all reason, she fell in love with me. Even after she learned of my past, she accepted me for who I was."

He took a deep breath.

"As our love was forbidden in her father's eyes, we eloped. Inutaisho, in fact, suggested it. I didn't believe in God but Akiko insisted we were wed before His eyes. When we returned, her father was furious. He disowned her on the spot. It was the first time I saw the steel in my Akiko. She turned her back on her father and left.

"One day, the Duke of Iswain came to Inutaisho to appeal for his lands. His three sons were dead and as law decreed, his lands would return to the Crown upon his death. Inutaisho called me forward to summon the Lord in charge of the registry of lands. His Grace gasped and ran forwards to clutch my hands. He identified me as his long-lost son who'd been kidnapped by slavers. Portraits of me taken during my childhood supported his claim.

"Upon his death the following year, I became the thirty-first Duke of Iswain.

"Then you were born, and soon your mother was expecting again. I was the happiest man alive. I continued to serve Inutaisho and life progressed perfectly till talk of war began. Soon, it became clear that a traitor walked among us. Sensitive information about the Western Lands had begun to circulate among other kingdoms. I was charged to reveal the traitor and bring him to light, whereupon he'd be executed publicly and violently for high treason.

"Through my network of spies, I found incriminating evidence that the traitor was none other than Akiko's father, the Marquess of Elyswne. Unable to hide this from my beloved wife, I did something that I've regretted to this day: I told her."

To take a sip of water, he paused in his tale.

"She was sitting on the sofa while you slept peacefully with your head in her lap. She didn't once look up as I relayed my investigation to her. I feared for the first time in my life that I might lose her. Then I asked the question that had been weighing upon my heart.

"I said, 'What do you want me to do?'

"She stroked your hair gently as she replied. 'Deal with him however you must to avoid tarnishing our family name.' She looked straight into my eyes. 'He no longer has a daughter; he disowned me. A traitor is a traitor.'

"I kissed her cheek and left to do her bidding. I killed my father-in-law, silenced the servants, set fire to his manor and left. I should have waited till the final timber turned to ash on the ground.

"The next morning, I rode to the capital to inform Inutaisho of my findings.

"'My investigation has been completed.'

"'Perfect. Who was the traitor?'

"'An insignificant lordling. He's already been dealt with.'

"'I asked specifically that you take him alive.'

"In all my years of service to Inutaisho, I had never heard him speak in such a frosty tone. It held a cold fury that surpassed the intensity of any white-hot rage. For the first time since I'd entered his service, I lied to my liege. I told him I was unable to take the traitor alive and that the body had been destroyed.

"'You lie! I have evidence that the Marquess of Elyswne is the traitor. Your father in law. In fact, you are in cohorts with him. You burned his manor to the ground to cover his tracks as he fled for the border.'

"'You are mistaken, my lord.'

"Yet I didn't fight when he seized me. I'd made a decision and would accept the consequences like a man; the man he'd given me the opportunity to become.

"'The Duke of Iswain is charged with the crime of High Treason. He will be executed by public beheading. His head will be displayed as a warning to those who might betray the Crown. Furthermore, his entire family will be sentenced to death.'

"'No! My family is innocent!'

"'It's too late now. You should have thought twice about committing treason. My soldiers began their march towards your home hours ago.'

"My sanity gave way to desperation. I killed the two men restraining me and rode home as fast as I could, but when I arrived, the soldiers had murdered everyone in the house. You'd only survived because your mother had hid you in a hole in the floor.

"I took you and fled for the border. During our escape, a tree branch knocked you unconscious. I left you with a couple at a farmhouse and went to the capital to plead sanctuary from Lykakides. That was when you made an unexpected appearance."

Kagome knew this part of the story well. Every time a guest enquired about Kagome's connection to the family, Lykakides took it as an excuse to recount how she'd come to the palace. He'd told it so many times with so many little embellishments that Kagome herself was unsure of the truth.

"Afterwards, you became a part of Lykakides' household and I became his spymaster. The Duke of Iswain, Inutaisho's shadow, was no more and Lord Higurashi, Lykakides' ambassador and advisor, rose from the ashes like the legendary phoenix. Whenever I'm away, I make appearances in each kingdom with a different persona. It is necessary that I check up on my spies and ensure the network runs efficiently and undetectably. I must also witness the ongoings of the Courts myself. After all these years, I'd thought the Duke of Iswain had been lost to time but it appears I've been discovered.

"There is a spy in our midst. Your existence has been a secret until now. This means you will need to be on your guard at all times."

...


	7. Chapter 7

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 7**_

"Now," he whispered, "you know what monster I am."

Kagome held onto his hand like a lifeline.

"You're not a monster. You're my father, and nothing that you've done or ever could do will change that."

He gave her a soft smile.

"I see more of your mother in you every day."

"Thank you." Kagome gave the hand a warm squeeze. "I hadn't thought of her in so long that I'd almost forgotten I ever had a mother. Do you have a likeness of her?"

"All the paintings of her were destroyed in the fire that consumed the manor."

"Oh." Disappointment lanced through Kagome.

"I managed to rescue one. I've kept it close to my heart all these years."

Her father reached into his shirt and produced a gold locket she'd never seen before. He unclasped the necklace and set it in her hand. Kagome admired the workmanship of this simple gold heart and its entwining vines, crafted in relief. She eased open the well-used hinge and gasped at what lay within.

Two miniature paintings lined the locket. The one depicting her mother was exquisite. The painter had captured a warmth in her smile that could only belong to a woman both happy and loved. The other painting depicted a young Kagome with a sullen, pouting face. She vaguely recalled being told to sit still for what seemed like eternity for no reason at all. As she closed the locket, Kagome's fingertips passed over an indentation on the back. She turned it over and found words engraved into the gold.

She read them aloud. "To cherish and protect for all of eternity." Kagome looked up at her father, and found him watching with shaded eyes. "It's beautiful."

Kagome handed it back to her father. He kissed it and slipped it back over his head, where it settled atop his heart. Though he slipped it under his shirt, the knowledge that it remained always on his person comforted her.

"You are the most important thing to me," he told her quietly. "I will not take chances with your safety."

Kagome's lips parted in protest, but he raised a hand to silence her.

"I don't care how good you think your combat skills are. Once they know we're both very much alive, they will send assassins after us. I will handpick a personal guard to stay by your side at all times."

Kagome said in disbelief, "Including bathing and going to the garderobe with me?"

"Even that."

"Can't you imagine how well that would turn out? Not to mention that whoever's watching would know I know what's going on."

"I'm not joking, Kagome. These are trained professionals who won't hesitate to slit your throat."

"But I have the skills that you taught me," she insisted.

"They're useless against these foes. I trained them myself."

"...Oh." Kagome paused. "You couldn't have taught them everything!"

"No, I haven't, but the techniques I withheld take years to master."

"Then the least you can do is teach me some of them, so I might have a chance to survive."

He gripped her hand hard.

"Never, EVER believe you've no chance of survival. Believe yourself lost and you will fall into despair. So long as you're alive, you can and will survive." He released her hand with a sigh. "I hoped that you would never need to learn that particular lesson for yourself, but the past seems to have caught up with me. I should send you to another place."

"I refuse to be forced out of my home by a mere chance of danger."

Her father gave a faint smile.

"This has become your home, hasn't it? I need time to consider teaching you the darkest arts of assassination. One thing I know I will teach you, however, is poison study."

"Poison study?"

"How to identify, use and build up a tolerance to poisons." He rose from his seat and brushed a kiss over her brow. "Sleep now. Anything else can wait till tomorrow."

With that, he left. Kagome heard the door creak as it swung shut behind him. She tried to do as her father bade and sleep, but dreamland evaded her for hours to come. When she finally began to slip into slumber, Kagome realized that her father never explained why the Queen of the Western Lands wanted him dead.

...

Lord Higurashi left Kagome's room and closed the door behind him.

"What did you find?" he said quietly to Piers.

"I checked up on Lord Deptchire. Apparently Lord Deptchire had received that particular decanter from Lord Dempsey. I'm pretty certain that Lord Deptchire is innocent. He's more too much of an idiot to have done this."

"I agree. See what comes up with Dempsey."

"Yes, my lord."

Piers bowed and disappeared to do his bidding. It was then that Lord HIgurashi noticed Tara coming in from the side room.

"Tara?"

"Yes, my lord?"

"Kagome is sleeping already. Make sure she sleeps undisturbed. I will be around to check up on her tomorrow and I will be posting a guard by her door so do not be alarmed."

"Yes, my lord."

Tara curtseyed low and Lord HIgurashi left to sleep in his own bed for the first time in a few days.

...

"Good morning, Kagome."

"Morning, father."

Kagome was propped up on her pillows and enjoying her breakfast when her father came around.

Her father made a noise of disapproval.

"What?" Kagome asked around her mouthful of toast."

"I was to hoping to catch you before you started breakfast."

Kagome swallowed.

"Why?"

"We agreed that we would begin your poison studies right?"

"Yes." Kagome confirmed his question slowly. "What does that have anything to do with my breakfast?"

"For starters, you should _always_ and I repeat _ALWAYS _test your food before you eat it."

Kagome groaned.

"Does this mean that I will have to stick a needle in everything I eat?"

"No. This means that you will have to change your habits and take smaller bites instead of wolfing down your food like you're so fond of doing."

Kagome glared at him indignantly.

"And I have a present for you."

Lord Higurashi pulled out a leather pouch from his pocket. He unfolded the pouch on her lap and showed her what was contained inside.

"These are your tools of trade." He picked up a long needle. "This one, you have seen me use before."

"Oh! I thought it was just an instrument to enhance the flavour of the brandy."

"Seriously?"

"Well, I didn't expect my father to be a spymaster."

"Shush. These walls are paper thin."

"Then why don't we go to your office?" Kagome asked.

"You should stay in bed for another day."

"I'm _fine,_ you know." Kagome snapped. "I hate lying in bed like an invalid!"

"Technically you're sitting in bed."

Kagome glowered at her father.

"By the way, who brought the flowers?"

"Tara says Kouga sent them." Kagome paused. "I must say that I am surprised that the flowers arrived before I woke up. I've never knew that Kouga was even capable of getting up before 10 o'clock."

Her father's gaze focused in on the flowers. His gaze hardened and he grabbed the flowers out of the vase. Ignoring the water dripping onto the carpet, he hurled them off the balcony.

"What are you doing?" Kagome cried.

"Those are lotus leechers. They are flowers that emit poisonous fumes into the air. At night, they close and suck in oxygen. Even cut, they are deadly." He paused. "You said that Kouga sent them?"

"I don't know anymore." Kagome with a tremble in her voice. "Tara told me that they came from him."

"They're obviously not." her father growled. "Kouga would never try to kill off his first choice for a wife."

Lord Higurashi watched Kagome shake with her arms around her knees. He went over and put his arms around her.

"I'm so sorry, angel." He kissed the top of her head. "I didn't mean to get you involved. It's too dangerous here. I'm sending you to the country estate."

Kagome agreed without protesting.

"I've never thought that they would try to kill me again so soon."

"Now that the assassins know that you exist, they will strike at me through you. We'll continue your poison studies tomorrow."

"No." Kagome moved out of his embrace. "It is even more important for me to continue now. I need to know how to protect myself."

Kagome looked up with steel in her eyes. Her father was taken aback by how much she reminded him of a younger himself at that moment.

"You're right. This completely changes my plans." Her father left out a breath. "I need to teach you how to defend yourself."

...

In the end, they moved Kagome's lessons to Lord HIgurashi's office. Her father continued introducing the tools in the leather pouch. The needle, as he had explain previously, was to be used in private when no one was around. As her father warned, it is important to test the alcohol again after it has been poured out of the decanter. For public affairs, Lord Higurashi gave her a ring with their family crest of a sakura blossom entwined with immortal ivy.

"I had the sakura crest commissioned with you in mind. It also serves a dual purpose of being a poison tester. One will hardly notice if you accidentally dip a finger into your drink."

Then he pulled out a set of cutlery from the pouch.

"These are also made of the purest silver. The silverware that is normally used has a higher concentration of other metals to increase its durability. Substitute these for the standard cutlery when no one else is looking."

Kagome spent the next hour learning how to properly switch the cutlery.

"It's very similar to picking pockets." she was told.

"Why would I need to know something like that?"

"Because it's a useful skill to have."

And manifested Kagome's key to her rooms in his hand. Kagome snatched it back indignantly.

"The majority of the deadly poisons have a slight taste. _Never_ take a big bite out of your food. Nibble and thoroughly taste your food before swallowing. Some assassins concentrate the poison in one area of the food in hopes of avoiding detection. Rely on your senses and your tools. If anything tastes funny, stop eating immediately."

Kagome sat back and watched in opened mouthed atonishment as her father removed a book to reveal a hidden compartment.

"Come here, Kagome." Her father gestured to the books. "Caedeus, third row down, fifth from the right."

Kagome nodded in acknowledgement.

"Pay attention." Her father instructed. "Three spins all the way around, a quarter left to the north, half a spin right to the south, three quarter left to the east."

Kagome watched, analyzed and committed it to memory. The lock clicked and the bookshelf swung inward to reveal a narrow passage. Kagome didn't hesitate to follow her father into the dark passage but she jumped when the door slid ominously closed from behind them. Once inside, Kagome realized that the walls gave off light.

"What gives off the glow?" She asked.

"They're a dark fungus from the forest of the north. They grow in dark caves that have never seen the light of day. The fluorescent glow is from a chemical in their spores."

"They're beautiful," she breathed. Kagome crouched down to get a better look at the fungus. "Why they glow different colours!"

"Don't stay here too long. Just like the lotus leechers, they emit vapours. They are harmless as long you don't stay in here for over half an hour."

Kagome stood up and followed her father to the end of the passage. Her father took off his locket and showed her the panel beside the door.

"This leads to a secret room that has been here before I came to be Lykakide's spymaster. I just added in the fungus and modified the key for the stone slab. The fungus is there as a trap to those who try to enter this room without my knowledge. I am the only one with the key and the door in the library only opens one way. Any intruders would die in the passageway."

"What is so important in here that you need so many precautions?"

"You will see."

Her father took the locket and inserted it into the panel at the side. He pushed the locket in and the stone door slid open. Kagome gasped at the sight that greeted her.

It was certainly not what she was expecting. Inside was a room not unlike his office outside. A large, beautiful mahogany desk and a chair was the first thing she saw. The table was littered with letters and official looking documents with the royal seal on them. Behind the desk was a bookshelf crammed full of books and letters. Kagome could only imagine what secret that bookshelf contained. Off to the side was a table with vials and tubes scattered on the tube. It brought to mind the perfumery that she had once visited. What held her attention were the shelves and shelves of liquids. Even behind the glass, she could clearly read the label on each vial and bottle. _Belladonna, hemlock, appleseed._ Just as Kagome surmised, it was her father's collection of poisons.

Her father walked over and sat down in his leather chair.

"Welcome to my lair," he said dramatically.

"And I presume that you're the evil dragon within it?" Kagome replied dryly.

"Exactly." Her father propped up his feet onto his desk. "You have no idea how many people would cut off a limb to possess my collection. It has taken over a decade for me to collect every known poison and antidote."

Her father smiled.

"What is more important than my precious poisons are the documents in my possession. I have hundred of letters containing information on almost every important lord and lady in the four cardinal kingdoms."

Kagome surveyed the room in a different light.

"Have you ever thought that someone might try to burn this place down?"

"They could try but that's not going to get them anywhere. The foundations of the palace and the entire structure of this room are made of stone. I do not know if you have realized but we are actually underground. This is as safe as it gets."

Her father crossed his arms.

"As I told you before, there is only one entrance to this place. Even if they managed to get into here, they would not know how to get out."

Kagome looked at him warily.

"You are going to tell me how to get out of here, right?"

Her father looked at her cheerfully and told her, "Then we better start memorizing your poisons. I am of half a mind to leave you until you do!"

"Great." Kagome muttered.

"Well! Let's get started!" her father said enthusiastically.

Her father went to his bookshelf and pulled out a book as thick as her waist.

"You expect me to memorize all of this?" Kagome said disbelievingly.

"You were the one who wanted to learn."

"I wanted to learn how to defend myself!

"This is the first step. Everyone needs to eat at some point. What is better way to defend yourself?"

"How about taking that book and smacking any assassins that come after me with it?" she suggested hopefully.

Her father thought about it.

"I don't think so." He opened the book and flipped to the first page. "Look! It even has pretty pictures!"

Kagome groaned and got to work.

...

About a hundred tasting and smelling tests later, Kagome felt queasy and wasn't sure if her tongue would ever been able to taste food properly again. For all her hard work, she could identify a roughly less than 15% of all the poisons listed in the book.

"There is no way that I can identify all of these poisons." she complained.

"The most important thing is to recognize that there _is_ a poison in your food." her father explained patiently. "I'm making you identify them in the circumstance that you blundered and need the antidote. Also, you never know if someone close to you might get poisoned and need you to identify that poison to get the antidote for them instead."

"Wouldn't that blow your cover?"

He shrugged.

"Love vs. secrecy. Life vs. death. These are all decisions that we have to make."

Kagome idly flipped through the pages of the book and came uponthe entry for _Asperia._

_"_Deadly poisonous when harvested its form as a young shoot." She read aloud. "Fatal when ingested. Victims suffer from hallucinations and extreme chest pain. Lungs fill with blood and victim asphyxiates. It is recognized by its taste of bitter almonds and its distinct sickly sweet syrup smell. No antidote has been discovered." Kagome paused in her reading. "That's nasty. How did I survive if there's not antidote?"

"Well, there is no known antidote."

"Then does that mean you have an antidote?"

"Of some sort."

"What is it?"

"Before I tell you, drink it up. You're still weak from the poison."

Her father held up a small cup of something vile.

"Pah. That smells horrible."

"You need it."

Kagome accepted the cup. She plugged her nose and downed the liquid. She gagged at the slightly metallic taste.

"That was gross."

Her father handed her a glass of water.

"Where does all of this come from?"

Her father gave her a secretive smile and didn't reply.

"So. What was that?"

"Blood and milk."

Kagome gagged. Her father was suddenly in front of her with a bucket.

"Don't throw it up." he warned. "I'll just make you drink more."

Kagome covered her mouth and gagged a few more times before regaining control over her stomach.

"Were you seriously expecting me to accept that fact without the slightest reaction?"

"Yes."

Her father grinned mischievously.

"It's not every day that I drink blood and milk."

"Cow's blood. Trust me, angel. There is much worse tasting things out there."

"So what was in the antidote? I shouldn't have survived."

"For starters, you are not a normal person. You have my blood running through your veins."

"I don't understand."

"When I was in the guild, we were put through a much more rigorous study than the one I gave you today. In a fact, they used us as guinea pigs. They forced us to ingest larger doses of poisons and watched us writhe in agony as our bodies fought the poison. Those that survived moved onto the next poison."

He took a sip of his water.

"We started off with over a two hundred boys. Five including me, survived the training. It did what they sought to accomplish. We were all fairly immune to poison. Our bodies naturally produced antidotes for each of the poisons that we were subjected to. Poison darts and tranquilizers couldn't slow us down."

"So you are saying that the blood I inherited from you contained the antidote to _Asperia?"_

"Yes. I was fairly certain but I gave you a mixture of my own blood and milk to increase your chances of survival."

"Your blood?" she said weakly.

"Yes."

Kagome grabbed the bucket and emptied the contents of her stomach.

...


	8. Chapter 8

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 8**_

True to his word, Kagome's father made her choke down another cup of blood. She'd reminded herself often that both substances had come from a cow — though she didn't mind the sight of blood, ingesting it was a whole different matter. The rest of the day was spent learning about even more poisons; her father only released her to freshen up before dinner.

She placed her bet on the bookshelf when he asked her where to guess the secret exit's location. To her surprise, it turned out to be a trapdoor beneath his desk that led to the stables. (He joked that she could use it to slip away for 'private encounters', to which she promptly threatened to disown him. He reminded her that only the poor fathers of wayward daughters reserved that right.)

They returned to the castle and separated in the main corridor. Her father left for his own rooms alone, but Kagome had a new friend to tag along after her.

He met them on their way back to the castle. Her father had introduced him simply as 'Lars' before leaving. As this six-foot-plus stranger was supposed to be her shield against bloodthirsty assassins, she supposed she'd better talk to him. He never replied.

Kagome nodded to Cedric and Rye as they left to change shifts. She ignored their snickering at Lars' presence, and moved to unlock the door to her room. She frowned: it was already open.

"Allow me to enter first," Lars said, in a heavy accent she didn't quite recognize.

Surprised that he could actually speak, Kagome stepped back from the doorway. Lars strolled into the room as though he owned the place. Rolling her eyes, Kagome entered with greater caution. Something danced at the fringe of her vision, and she spun towards it with muscles tensed.

"Oh. It's you." She lowered her guard at the sight of Tara.

"Greetings, my lady. Would you like me to help you change for dinner?"

"Yes, please." Kagome indicated the big man standing at the door with a wave of her hand. "And this is Lars. He'll be trailing after me for awhile."

Confident that Tara would follow her without orders, Kagome headed for her bedroom. To her disconcertment, Lars followed too.

Kagome stopped him at the doorframe. "I don't think so," she said firmly. "I'm changing."

"I have my or—"

She shut the door on him and fastened the lock.

"All right!"

She seated herself at the vanity and rubbed at the dark smudges beneath her eyes. Tara slipped up behind her.

"Would you like to wear the rose gown tonight, my lady?"

"No," Kagome said absently, "I'll wear the yellow one again." She picked up one of her hair accessories and watched it glitter in the light. "Do you think this will go with the—"

Tara's hand clamped over her mouth, wrapped in a sickly-sweet smelling handkerchief. Kagome struggled against her grip and tried to call out to Lars, though that did little more than force her to inhale against Tara's hand.

In a final attempt to alert Lars, she dealt a feeble kick to the wall as the world turned gray before her eyes.

….

"Where is that girl?"

By Lord Higurashi's calculations, Kagome would've spent two hours preparing for dinner by now. He'd resigned himself to her tardiness long ago, but he never knew her to be more than twenty minutes late. Drumming his fingers against the white tablecloth, he cast impatient eyes towards the door.

It swung open. He prepared himself to berate Kagome for being an hour behind schedule, but shut his mouth when the new arrival turned out to be Piers.

"Where the hell is she?" Lord Higurashi made an impatient gesture. "It shouldn't take her two hours to dress for a simple dinner!"

"I believe we have a problem on our hands, my lord." He raised an envelope sealed with unstamped wax and slid it onto the table. "This arrived just moments ago."

Lord Higurashi tore it open, yanked out its contents and began to read.

_Greetings to the Duke of Iswain,_

_Let us forgo the usual niceties. We have your daughter, Kagome. Do you want her back? The terms are simple: your life for hers. Come to the Cochart's Mill by midnight, or we'll add another ghost to its folkloric inhabitants._

The note wasn't signed, but the crest drawn in its place confirmed his suspicious. Lord Higurashi crushed it in his fist.

"My lord?"

He forced himself to release the letter and handed the mangled thing to Piers. He smoothed it out and skimmed it.

"Just as I feared." Piers hesitated. "What will you do, my lord? It's clearly a trap."

"You've read the letter. There's no way around it."

"But Crochart's Mill is several hours across the border."

"I know where it is," Lord Higurashi snapped. He pushed back from the table. "Ready my horse and be prepared to ride in five minutes. I'm going to take back my daughter."

Piers bowed and smiled.

"Yes, my lord."

…..

Kagome came to consciousness with a dull throb in her arms and legs. Though her head felt as though it were stuffed with wool, she realized that her arms and legs were bound.

The musty scent of old, decaying wood assaulted her nose, reminding her of the visions she'd endured during her poison-induced fever. Dim light streamed through a nearby window, through which she saw a water mill. Her captors must've thrown her into one of the buildings attached.

Kagome was cold, tired, and… hungry. Her stomach growled in the dark.

A female voice said, "I think she's awake."

She shut her eyes and made herself limp. A booted foot nudged her in the stomach.

"Stop pretending." Another voice, this one male. "We already know you're conscious."

Kagome opened her eyes again and turned them in the voices' direction. Though drawn hoods obscured their faces, their voices gave them away.

"Lord Deptchire," Kagome breathed. Her tongue felt like lead.

"Ah. I'd always thought you were too smart for your own good." He pulled back his hood. "Even if we were planning to release you, we couldn't now, seeing as you recognize me."

"Why did you kidnap me?"

"Don't be coy." Tara stepped into the moonlight. "You know exactly what for."

Kagome spat at her feet. "I should've known you were the one who sent for the flowers."

"Did you like them? They were ever so pretty." Tara smirked. "You were just a means to get close to His Grace. All this time I thought you were just his ward — I only learned of your true heritage a month ago."

"What did we ever do to make you betray us?"

Tara laughed at this. "Betray you? I was a Western spy from the start. Your father murdered mine in his blind destruction of the Dark Assassins." Her tone assumed a bitter edge. "He even had the gall to expect I'd be grateful to live as a palace maid! As if I'd ever be grateful to my father's murderer.

"Sensing my hatred, the Queen took me in as her personal maid, and saw that what skills I'd learned from my father were nurtured. So when Her Majesty sent me to take care of a thorn in her side, I jumped at the chance to exact my revenge."

Tara's eyes burned, lip curling in distaste.

"I never intended to spend the rest of my years as a servant while you enjoyed the high-born life that should've been mine as well. Your father robbed me of my birthright when he murdered mine." A faint, bitter chuckle. "I suppose there's no harm in telling you that we plan to present his and your heads to the Queen."

Lord Deptchire's eyes raked along her figure. He crouched down, cupped her chin, and forced her to look up.

"Tara, darling. I believe we might have to reconsider that. She'll fetch a pretty price as someone's concubine," he said, the hint of a whine to his voice.

Kagome spat at him in reply. Cursing, Lord Deptchire wiped it away with his forearm and backhanded her across the face. He grabbed a fistful of her tunic and hauled her up to eye level.

"Don't tempt me." He sneered. "If you weren't worth more with your virginith intacy, I'd take you right now."

Kagome bit her lip to stifle a cry when he threw her already-bruised body to the floor.

"Don't be a bully, Leonard. There's no reason to torture her before we kill her. It's not her fault she was born that bastard's daughter."

He thumbed a missed streak of spittle from his jaw. "If you're so sympathetic, why don't you let her go?"

"I made a promise to the Queen," she said coldly. "Remember your place."

Kagome fixed them both with a calm, even stare. "You won't get away with this. When my father comes for me, you two will wish you were dead."

Tara chuckled.

"We're counting on his arrival. In fact, I dropped him a note to make it that much easier for him to find us."

"Lars? Oh! Your bodyguard!" Tara's laughter echoed in the dark. "That poor man didn't even know what hit him. I put him to rest... permanently."

Kagome closed her eyes and prayed for the departed Lars. Her father was right. She was completely out of her league.

"I'll do the same to your father when he arrives."

A familiar voice said, "You can tell him yourself."

….

Kagome rolled onto her side and found her father standing in the doorway.

Tara and Lord Deptchire drew their own weapons. Tara levelled hers at the intruder. "You're a fool to come here, Higurashi." She paused in mock thought. "Or, should I say, 'Your Grace.'"

"I don't answer to that title anymore." His eyes narrowed. "And I'm nowhere as foolish as you are for kidnapping my daughter." His gaze flickered down to her. "Are you all right, angel?"

She managed a smile. "Peachy keen."

"Drop your sword." Lord Deptchire moved to haul Kagome up by her hair. She forced back a cry of pain as he pressed the flat of his sword to her throat. "If she's worth anything to you…"

Lord Higurashi unsheathed his weapon and let it clatter to the floor. Tara swept it out of reach with her foot; it settled on the stone a few feet from Kagome.

Tara nudged Lord Higurashi with the tip of her own sword.

"And the rest of your weapons. I doubt an ex-assassin of your calibre would embark upon a rescue mission with only a sword."

"Old habits die hard." Lord Higurashi's lips formed a razor-thin smile.

As if to remind him of the situation's sensitivity, Lord Deptchire gave Kagome's hair a sharp yank. Kagome saw her father's eyelids drop to half-mast as he reached inside his coat. Faster than she could follow, something flew threw the air — and then Lord Deptchire's grip loosened, blood splashing hot against her as his headless body collapsed. Kagome shrieked and tried to wriggle away from the body convulsing on its own accord. His blood spread quick, soaking into her clothes.

"Your daughter acts as though she's never seen a murder before," Tara said mildly. Her sword flashed in the moonlight.

"You don't seem very upset that your accomplice is dead."

Tara shrugged.

"Leonard was my link to the Queen; nothing more than a spoiled noble dabbling in the art of intrigue. This is a game only true survivors can play."

"Why are you working for the Queen?"

"Don't pretend you care." Tara's voice hardened. "You killed my father."

"Then he probably deserved to die."

Tara lunged with a shriek, sword extended. Kagome screamed, but her father produced a short blade to block her strike before it connected.

"I hate killing women, you know. Perhaps if you—"

"As if you'd let me live."

"True enough."

Tara disengaged their weapons and circled him like a vulture circles its prey. Kagome wanted to scream in frustration as her father stood unmoving before her.

"No worries. Tonight, my sword will bathe in your blood, then your daughter's."

Lord Higurashi's eyes hardened.

"You'll do no such thing."

He flew at her, and they parried and engaged by turns, weapons singing with every interrupted blow. Frustrated at her helplessness, Kagome turned her eyes towards her father's discarded sword. It lay just beyond Lord Deptchire's corpse. Stamping out any feelings revulsion, Kagome crawled like a caterpillar through the pool of congealing blood.

A backward glance revealed that her father had gained the upper hand. Dark stains were spreading across Tara's clothes, and one cheek had been sliced open. From her vantage point, Lord Higurashi was relatively unharmed.

Kagome writhed and turned till she managed to grip Lord Deptchire's sword between her knees. She hooked her bound wrists over the blade and sawed at the ropes, eyes darting back to the duel. A particularly vicious stroke of Tara's caught Lord Higurashi in the upper arm. Attention held by the battle, Kagome nicked the inside of her own arm when the ropes finally broke. She hissed in pain and tore a strip from her tunic to bind the wound.

Now Tara had manoeuvered Lord Higurashi into a corner. Panicking, she groped around in the dark for the shuriken her father had earlier thrown. Her fingers slipped on the blood coating the metal and encountered the its killing edge. Resigned to her clumsiness, she held it close, turned back to the battle and waited for her moment.

It came when Tara chanced to strike from overhead. Her father blocked it with his sword held lenghthwise. Though the metal didn't suffer, Lord Higurashi took a knee to brace for the impact. Shuriken cold in her hand, Kagome forced herself calm and focused on her target.

"I am Taralynn of Yvelchire," Tara screamed, a fanatic gleam in her eye, "and I will avenge my father!"

Acting on instinct, Kagome flung the shuriken at Tara's unprotected back. She arched when it struck, giving Lord Higurashi time to pull away. He impaled her as she fell forwards, then shoved her back, letting her own momentum dislodge his blade.

Tara, trembling with shock, clamped her hands over the fatal wound. Blood streamed over her fingers and sprayed from her mouth when she coughed. The fire in her eyes extinguished, leaving them glassy and wet and still.

"F-Father... I've failed you..."

With that, Taralynn of Yvelchire breathed her last and died.

…

Lord Higurashi produced a black handkerchief and wiped his sword clean of blood. When it fell to the floor, she noticed a crimson crest depicting twin daggers crossed over hemlock. He leaned down to close Tara's unseeing eyes and moved to where Kagome sat.

"Nice shot," he said.

"Thank you." Now that the adrenaline had begun to fade, she felt breathless and light-headed. "It was my first time using a shuriken."

He paled. "Good thing you weren't off," he murmured, hefting her into his arms.

Kagome hissed when he nudged her injured arm. Her father frowned at the sight of it.

"How did you do that?"

Kagome looked sheepish. "I cut myself on Deptchire's sword while sawing off the ropes."

"And this?" He eyed her bloodied fingertips.

"I told you that it was my first time using a shuriken..."

"Anyone would know not to hold it by the edge."

"It was dark," she protested as he carried her out the door. The air smelled wonderfully fresh. "Don't we have a bit of cleaning up to do?"

"No. I left my calling card. They should get the idea."

...


	9. Chapter 9

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 9**_

_Eight Years Later_

Once more, Kagome adjusted the veil covering the lower half of her face. Although her eyes were lined with enough kohl to ensure her own father wouldn't recognize her, she had to ensure the rest of her disguise stayed in place. A slip of the mask spelled the difference between success and disaster. This in mind, Kagome bent to pick up her tea tray and proceeded quietly down the hall.

She turned a corner and nearly crashed into another person. She barely managed to sidestep the figure, spinning in a half-circle to keep the teapot from flying off the tray. Cursing, she dropped to her knees and moved to collect the spilt tea leaves.

"Watch where you're going," she snapped without looking up. "You could get someone killed!"

Balancing the tray on one hand and managing her cumbersome robes with the other, she glared at the black boots in front of her face. Her words withered away on her tongue as her eyes traveled up from those boots, to an elaborate yellow-and-blue obi and white sleeves embroidered with sakura blossoms in royal red. Kagome didn't have to look further up to know her luck had finally run out.

….

"My most sincere apologies, Your Highness." Kagome injected an appropriate tremble and squeak into her voice. "I should've looked where I was going."

She lowered the tea tray to the carpet and prostrated till her head touched the floor. Kagome made herself shudder, as though suppressing tears. When there came no responding cry for her head, she peeked cautiously up through her bangs. Kagome had never seen this man up close before...

Crown Prince, Lord Sesshoumaru, cut a breathtaking figure. Aphrodite herself must have sculpted his face, for she found him so beautiful it hurt her to look at him. His royal blood proved itself in the burgundy stripes along his cheekbones and the crescent moon gracing his forehead. Sun-gold eyes regarded the world from a canvas of flawless, pale skin. For all his unearthly beauty, however, there seemed nothing soft about him.

Even from her position on the floor, she could tell he towered high over her own 5'5". He possessed a leaner frame than her father, but his fitted kimono revealed a well-muscled body. Kagome didn't doubt he lived up to his namesake, The Killing Perfection, though she had yet to witness his swordsmanship for herself.

Mentally, she told His Highness to enjoy the show. Kagome was about to give a performance that would shame the most experienced actress. She smirked beneath her veil and let the tears fall.

...

Sesshoumaru had never been chastised by a woman before. Even his nurse had been too afraid of the power her young charge would someday wield to scold him. He'd been prepared to condemn this termagant for her loose tongue when she flung herself prostrate on the floor.

Unconvinced that this foul-mouthed wench was truly so meek, he waited for her to squirm and beg for her life. Instead, she began to shake. He flinched inwardly at the sharp scent of tears. He hated crying women. They were more incoherent and than their usual silly selves, and Sesshoumaru forced himself to tame the urge to smack her silent. It wouldn't do for the Crown Prince to lose control and brutalize the servants. He took a deep breath and counted to seven until he was calm. Emotions did not - would not - dictate his actions. Reminding himself that he was the injured party here, Sesshoumaru gazed down at her and decided to wait.

...

Kagome was confused. What was wrong with this man? Her tears had saved her from the ire of dozens of others. By this time she ought to be sauntering free down the hall, with her victim feeling vile for injuring her so. What was she doing wrong?

"Please," she whispered, "don't kill me."

"Kill you?"

Kagome shivered at the low, melodious timbre to his voice. She thought she sensed a blend of confusion and disgust in his otherwise cool voice.

"You're not worth my time." His tone took on a hard edge. "Be on your way, and watch where you're going."

Kagome wobbled to her feet, swallowing a wince at the pain in her knees from her sudden descent to the floor. She'd probably pay for it later.

"Thank you for your mercy."

She curtseyed, gathered her tray, and walked away from Lord Sesshoumaru as quick as decorum would allow.

...

Who was she? When she lifted her head, Sesshoumaru realized that she wore the robes and veils of his mother's ladies-in-waiting. She'd burned him with her gaze as she fled down the hall, and he thought he'd caught a gleam of amusement in those watery blues.

Sesshoumaru cast that thought away. Even noblewomen wouldn't dare laugh at him. Then again, no noblewoman should be given to such colourful cursing. Dismissing her from his thoughts, he carried on down the hall.

...

Kagome paused in her stride to regain her composure. She only had herself to blame for that close call. No highborn lady would've sworn like that - in fact, no highborn lady would've known how to! Kagome resisted the urge to bang her head against the nearest wall. She counted to seven instead, balanced her tea tray in one hand and knocked on the gilded door before her.

"Come in."

Kagome pushed the door inwards and curtseyed. "Your afternoon tea, Your Majesty."

"You're late."

"My apologies. I had a mishap in the hallway."

"Excuses, excuses." A note of disgust. "Prepare my tea, Evelyn."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Kagome's slippers didn't make a sound as she moved across luxurious carpets. Her robes trailed behind her and Kagome prayed she wouldn't step on them. Her Majesty wouldn't tolerate clumsiness, particularly in her ladies-in-waiting. Cautiously, she set down the tea tray and began to prepare its contents.

She counted to ninety as she prepared the concoction of tea leaves and boiling water. Then she reached up to touch her ear. In one swift movement, she unhooked the small sac of poison masquerading as an earring. She palmed it and poured the tea into a delicate china cup. While she stirred in the milk and sugar, she pinched the poison sac behind the handle of her spoon till its contents ran down the metal and into the cup. Once she was certain that it had diluted, she set down the spoon and brought Her Majesty her drink.

Her Majesty Queen Kaori reclined on a lounging chair, surrounded by cushions stuffed with the finest down. Fruit imported from exotic lands were washed and displayed in ornamented bowls for her dining pleasure. Servants fanned her with huge ostrich plumes, while vibrant silk hangings swayed in the breeze from the open terrace.

The queen herself was clad in the finest silks money could buy. The arrangement of her clothes barely managed to preserve her modesty. The thin, translucent fabric was perfect for these hot climes, though they looked as if a callused fingertip would tear them. For a banished queen, she lived in the lap of luxury.

Thanks to the aeonian beauty her kind possessed, Queen Kaori's age was indeterminable. A gold circlet gleamed atop her coiffed hair, a reminder that despite her disgrace, she was still the Queen of the Western Lands. Her harem and lifelong dedication to pleasure were legendary. Kagome never understood why King Inutaisho had never curtailed his wife. Any other man would've cast her off.

As Kagome drew near, Queen Kaori eyed the tea tray and waved it away.

Of course. The queen always insisted that Kagome sample the tea she made. Using a small spoon reserved for this purpose, she tasted the drink as per usual. Queen Kaori nodded her approval, relieved Kagome of the cup and sipped. And frowned. And sipped.

Fury contorting her face, she flung the cup at Kagome. She raised her long sleeve to shield her face from the scalding spray.

"You little bitch," Queen Kaori hissed. "You poisoned my tea!"

Kagome lowered her arm.

"Actually, I've been poisoning you since the first day I served you. You might have thrown away this cup, but the rest will see that you've no choice now but to die."

Queen Kaori snarled. "Have you forgotten that I'm immune to poison? But you should be dead, little human. You drank the same tea every time."

Kagome shrugged out of her robes to reveal the tight-fitting leathers worn underneath.

"Who says I'm not immune to poison, 'Your Majesty'?"

"And here I was wondering who among my servants was a spy." Her eyes narrowed into wicked slits. "I'll execute you myself."

Kaori sprung from the couch and threw off her silks, leaving herself clad in a chest-wrap and loincloth. The servants dropped their ostrich feathers and scattered as her eyes glowed and her jaw elongated into something canine. Kagome grabbed the sais strapped to her thighs and sank into a battle crouch. Kaori made as if to roar, but all that resulted was a gurgle and a trickle of blood from her mouth.

"W-What is this?"

Kagome smirked. "Demonsbane, with a touch of cocoa. It's specifically tailored for your kind."

White fur sprang from Kaori's pale skin, fangs sprouting from her monstrous jaw.

"You can force your transformation, but you'll die sooner for it."

Kaori's canine lip curled. "If I'm to die, I'll take you down with me!"

Kagome held her ground as Kaori lunged and knocked her off her feet. She rolled with her across the carpet and flung the dog demoness off her with a shoulder-throw. Kaori stumbled and crashed against a wall.

"Is that it, Your Majesty? You might as well be human yourself."

Quicker than Kagome anticipated, Kaori had her up against the wall hanging by her throat.

"Even in this state," she said, spraying blood and spittle, "I can easily snap your neck."

Just as Kaori began to squeeze, Kagome kneed her hard in the solar plexus. Surprise loosened Kaori's grip long enough for Kagome to drop and bring up her sais, though the dog demoness managed to block them with her partially-grown claws.

Slash, cut, block, strike. Kaori lashed at her head; Kagome evaded it with a crouch and took Kaori's feet out from under her with a sweep of the leg. Kaori fell the floor with a cry.

Kagome stalked forwards with her sais, twirling them in a slow arc as she approached.

"A wounded dog backed into a corner with her tail tucked between her legs." Her voice assumed a mock-sympathetic lilt. "How far you've fallen. Do you know why I'm here?"

Kaori only snarled, blood trickling now from a nostril.

"To kill me."

"Yes, but why?" Kagome let her veil fall, and Kaori's eyes widened. "Do you know who I am?"

"A whore."

"I'm not the one who spreads her legs for any man who asks." Kagome chuckled, then pressed her lips into a thin line. "No. I'm the daughter of a woman whose death you ordered."

"I don't know who you're talking about, but I admit it's a shame you weren't slaughtered along with her."

Kagome's eyes hardened.

"You condemned my father for honouring his vows of matrimony and refusing your bed."

Though her eyes were already glazing, Kaori began to laugh; a sharp, barking laugh punctuated with fits of bloody coughing.

"Oh! I remember. You're that bastard's daughter. It's a wonder that you're still alive."

"My hatred for you sustained me."

Kaori's laughter doubled.

"You should be begging for your life."

"Don't you know?" Kaori's gave a ragged chuckle. "I do not beg. I was born a royal and will meet a dignified end as a royal. But your kind... you are trash from the moment of conception to the moment you return to the dirt."

Kaori poured the last of her strength into a chorus of hysterical, shrieking laughter. Kagome's eyes narrowed.

"Then die."

She slashed at Kaori's right cheek; crimson bloomed along white fur.

"This is for my mother."

She laid open the opposite cheek.

"This one is for my father."

Kagome could hear her heart beating over the dog demoness' mirth. She raised her sais.

"And this one's for me."

...

When someone knocked on the door of his study, Sesshoumaru paused in his writing and automatically looked up. When he returned his eyes to the letter he was penning, he realized he'd lost his thought. Frowning, Sesshoumaru returned his pen to the inkwell and crumpled the unfinished letter that had been intended for the Minister of the Eastern Lands.

Making no attempt to disguise his irritation, Sesshoumaru growled, "Come in already!"

A messenger, flustered and sweating, crept into the room.

"Your Highness." The man wrung his hands and swallowed hard. "I have very bad news."

He trailed off. Sesshoumaru made an impatient waving gesture. "Out with it. I'm a busy man."

The messenger gaped like a goldfish, looking pale enough to expire where he stood. Sesshoumaru sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. He ought to find out whose bright idea it was to assign rat demons to messenger duty and string them up from the castle parapets. Rat demons had brains and bravery equal to their rodent cousins'.

If he thought terrorizing the messenger would inspire him to speak, he would've already done so. Sesshoumaru, however, was rather fond of his study carpet and preferred not to replace it just because some demon couldn't hold his bladder.

"Queen Kaori is dead," the man finally managed to say. "She's been... assassinated."

"Where?" Sesshoumaru's voice remained calm.

"In her private rooms." The messenger looked ready to run for his life when Sesshoumaru rose behind his desk.

"I will look into the matter personally."

Sesshoumaru approached the door, causing the messenger to back straight out of the room. The rat demon actually squeaked under the scrutiny of his gaze.

"Go," Sesshoumaru said. "Inform my father of what has happened."

"Y-Yes, Your Highness!"

The messenger fled down the hall with a bow. Sesshoumaru didn't bother watch him disappear round the corner. He'd already turned, now headed for his mother's suites.

….

Sesshoumaru regarded his mother's body with cool detachment. Both cheeks had been laid open with something thin and sharp; further assessment revealed her left knee had also been shattered. The cause of death, an ugly slash to the throat, stood out against the lifeless white of her skin.

The royal coroner dipped a finger into the pool of blood surrounding the corpse and sniffed it.

"She was poisoned prior to assassination. The poison prevented her transformation. Whether or not she survived the assault, the poison would've killed her."

"My lady mother should have been immune to poison."

The coroner lapped at his fingertip and shivered.

"This is nasty stuff. It's demonsbane, touched with the essence of cocoa. The assassin responsible for Queen Kaori's death must have tailored the poison specifically for her."

"What does it do?"

"As far as I know, it prevents demons' transformation, leads to paralysis and eventual death. It's a relatively new substance with little documentation to go by."

"When did she ingest it?"

"The poison must have been in her system for months." The coroner lifted one of Queen Kaori's hands, revealing dark smudges in the beds of her half-transformed claws. "One can tell by the scent of her blood that it's been a part of her for some time. She should've died much earlier. I don't know how she managed to survive for so long."

Sesshoumaru walked over to his mother's lounging chair, its cushions disarrayed by the struggle, and caught sight of a tea stain. The responsible cup lay on the floor nearby. He picked it up and inhaled the rich scent of tea tinged with something extra.

"I think you can find your answer here."

He handed the teacup to the coroner. The man ran a finger round the bottom of the cup and sucked on it. He grimaced at the bitter taste.

"You're right, Your Highness. This is the antidote to demonsbane."

Sesshoumaru's cool voice took on a note of disbelief. "Do you suggest the assassin kept my mother alive all these months?"

"It appears so. When your mother refused to drink it, she unknowingly condemned herself to death." He shook his head. "Our assassin must have an exemplary knowledge of poisons to time and prepare the doses required to achieve this effect."

"How long do you suppose my lady mother has been dead for?"

"The body is cool to the touch. Queen Kaori has been dead for at least an hour."

"If she's been taking the poison for months, her murderer must be someone she trusted." Sesshoumaru turned to the guards that had accompanied him into his mother's suites. "Were there any witnesses?"

"The room was completely empty when we discovered Her Majesty," one said with a shrug. "The slaves and ladies-in-waiting had disappeared."

Sesshoumaru cursed. His mother's killer would be long gone by now. His gaze returned to where his mother lay, eyes glassy with death. Kaori might have made mistakes in her life, but she'd still given birth to him. He crouched to draw shut her eyelids. As he straightened, he noticed a hint of black cloth peeking from his mother's makeshift bodice. Gently, he tugged it free.

The handkerchief unfurled in his hand like a flag of death. A scarlet emblem depicting crossed sais behind a sakura blossom and sprig of nightshade decorated the fabric, encircled by ivy. A line of Latin waltzed beneath the crest: Revenge will be had.

A hint of floral perfume wafted from the handkerchief. Sesshoumaru remembered the woman in the hallway; her mocking blue eyes, robes of a lady-in-waiting and… tea.

She was the assassin.

Sesshoumaru whirled towards the guards. "Track down every single lady-in-waiting that's ever associated with Queen Kaori. I don't care how far they've gone or how long it'll take to find them. I want each one back for questioning."

Sesshoumaru unfastened his obi and slipped off his outer kimono. He covered his mother's body and clenched the black kerchief in his hand. This was a blatant challenge.

An eye for an eye, Sesshoumaru thought. Royal blood had been spilt and now there would be hell to pay.

…..


	10. Chapter 10

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 10**_

Kagome felt tipsy and high. She hiccupped and laughed by turns, listening to the shouting and banging sounds coming from the opposite side of the wall. Were there fairies trapped behind the wall? Perhaps she ought to free them and invite them to tea. Fairies would make the loveliest tea party guests. Half-giggling, half-snorting at the thought, she tipped back her head and prepared to take another deep swig of brandy.

No amber fire came splashing from the decanter. Kagome eyed the bottle and turned it upside-down, hoping to tempt the shy liquid out into the open. Nothing came.

Scowling, Kagome hurled the decanter at the wall from where the fairies came. Her throw proved weaker than she first thought as the decanter fell to the carpet halfway to its mark. Frustrated, Kagome stumbled over and dealt it the strongest kick she could muster.

Bad idea. As pain shot up her leg, Kagome howled like a banshee and hopped about on one foot till exhaustion tipped her onto her back. She barely registered the cool stone against her back. She was tired. Perhaps she ought to take a nap...

"Kagome!"

What was that noise? And who was 'Kagome'?

"Open this door now!"

Kagome forced herself upright and tried to locate the source of all that noise. She hauled herself to her feet and swaggered about until a collision with her desk stopped her progress. Grabbing the dagger atop the desk, she resolved to silence this mysterious, incessant voice. Never mind tea parties; those noisy fairies needed to die.

She trudged over to the wall and fumbled with the catch mounted on it. No fairies sprung forth, but she did manage to snap a fingernail with her clumsy scrabbling. Cursing, she turned the knob with her knuckles and took some satisfaction in the way the door slid slowly open.

"Kagome?"

Stupid fairies. Without any further thought, she lunged with the dagger.

When Kagome came around, she felt as though someone had run her down in a wagon and then backtracked just to watch their horse trample her again. Kagome lifted a hand to her aching head and groaned. Her mouth wasn't better off, dry and vile enough to house a dead rodent. She'd kill for a glass of water. The pounding between her temples increased and Kagome supposed she'd just made an intimate acquaintance with the mother of all hangovers.

Kagome managed to roll herself off the settee, and, painfully, onto the floor. Her now-bruised arm throbbed in tandem with her skull. What were the chances someone might have the merciful thought to kill her?

"Are you sober now?"

This was a dry, familiar voice. Kagome cracked open and eyelid and groaned in reply.

"Let me die in peace, Kouga."

"I don't think you're anywhere close to the Lady's black gates. The Lady herself would turn you away, what with the stink of brandy about you."

Kagome hugged her injured arm to her chest and threw its opposite over her eyes.

"If you're not gonna kill me, just go away."

Kagome felt the cool rim of a glass touch her own parched lips. The stench of alcohol made her stomach rebel. She pushed the glass away.

"No more brandy..."

"That's not what your inebriated self told me last night, between cursing me to hell and telling me to go and perform unspeakable acts which aren't even anatomically possible."

"If only you'd listened." Kagome didn't protest as he slipped an arm under her and helped her into a sitting position.

Kouga handed her the cup of brandy. Kagome took a reluctant sip and gagged.

"What the hell is this? Are you trying to kill me?"

"Well, you did ask… but no, you're doing that well enough yourself." Then, less flippantly, "How much did you drink, woman?"

"Ah... just a decanter of brandy."

"Just a decan-!" Kouga's eyes widened. "Do you know how much alcohol's in that!"

Kagome winced and shrank back. "Please, don't shout. You'd have been more merciful to kill me earlier."

"And deprive myself of the chance to watch you pay for your binge?" Kouga smirked. "I don't think so. I still have to repay you for coming at me with a dagger. Now, drink up. I made your father's famous recipe."

"You're obviously fine."

"Of course," he said with an arrogant wave. "You can't touch me on a good day."

Kagome wrinkled her nose, downed the cup's remainder. She clamped both hands over her mouth.

"Let it go." Calmly, Kouga produced a bucket and set it before her. As Kagome emptied her stomach into it, he held back her hair and ran a hand up and down her back. He offered her a glass of water once the heaving had stopped and watched her rinse her mouth with its contents.

"Thank you," she said, as Kouga took away her mess to dump it down the garderobe.

"I still can't get over how you've got a garderobe and a standing bath in here."

"And an icebox and a makeshift kitchen," she added.

"And that. You could live in this room alone."

"That's the point."

"I guess you're feeling better if you're talking normally again."

"Much better."

Kagome leaned back against the settee and grabbed a cushion. She hugged it to her chest as Kouga seated himself behind her desk, leaned his elbows atop it and steepled his fingers.

"Kagome—"

"You can save me the lecture, you know."

"No, I don't know!" He fixed her with a sharp look. "I've watched you come home after countless days-long disappearances. Whenever you finally decide to resurface, you look like you've been to hell and back."

Kagome's temper flared at his accusations. "That's exactly what happened. I HAVE been to hell and back."

"Why, Kagome? Why?" Kouga's voice rose. "Why are you doing this to yourself?"

"It's none of your business what I do!"

"It's my business when you start stumbling around so drunk you can't tell friend from foe!"

Kagome growled. "You weren't supposed to find me! Never follow me again. You could have died in the passageway. There's a fungus growing there designed to kill-" Kagome fixed him with harsh eyes, "intruders."

Kouga threw up his hands. "I'm an intruder now, am I?"

"Yes! I came here to be alone!"

"No! You came here to get piss-ass drunk!" Kouga's fists clenched till his knuckles turned white. "Can't you see? You're killing yourself!"

"Back off, Kouga. Only our friendship's stopping me from murdering you right now."

Kouga rattled a sigh and came round the desk to stand before her. "You know I love you. You don't have to keep doing this. Someone else can relieve you of this position."

Kagome's head shot up.

"This is exactly what I've been trying to avoid! I don't want to become somebody's trophy wife. I want to be in charge of my own life!"

"Well, great job you're doing with it! Coming back to get drunk every time you kill someone."

"You don't understand, do you?" Kagome hurled the cushion at him, ignoring the headache that returned twofold. "This isn't just about me. It's about regaining my family honour!"

"And you think they'd approve of your actions? They're dead, Kagome. You're wasting your life on revenge. Who did you kill this time? The Queen of the Western Lands?"

Kagome looked away in silence. Shock crossed Kouga's features, accompanied by a stream of curses.

"I thought you'd be smarter than that!"

She turned back to him with blazing eyes.

"She killed my family! Don't you dare condemn ME."

"I am your King," Kouga roared, "and I order you to give up on this blasted revenge business!"

Silence rose and hung between them, heavy as bonfire smoke.

"I'm telling you, Kouga." Kagome's tone adopted a warning note. "Don't do this."

"You force me to play this hand, Kagome. I've waited eight long years for you! My advisors have been pushing me harder and harder to marry Ayame, but I don't want anyone but you."

Kouga reached out for her; Kagome jerked away from his grasp.

"I never asked you to wait for me." Her eyes narrowed into something vicious. "I told you eight years ago that it would never happen. Do you remember that?"

Kouga stood in place, eyes shadowed. She knew he remembered their argument. They'd practically torn the castle apart with their confrontation.

"Would it be that bad to marry me?" Kouga's voice was soft, quiet. "What will happen once you've exacted your revenge? What will you have to show for it but a headcount?"

"You don't understand," she said stiffly. "Your father did."

"I'm not my father. No, I don't understand, and I suspect I never will. But… there has to be more reason to your life than avenging your family." Kouga sighed. "I won't order you to stop, but as a close friend, I don't want to see you destroy yourself. This path doesn't lead to justice, glory, or peace of mind." He shook his head. "It'll only lead you to Hell."

"I'll deal with the consequences myself."

"Just be sure of what you're doing. I don't want a war on my hands."

"Rest assured, Your Majesty." The title trickled from her lips like ice water. "I don't claim any association to you."

"That's what I'm afraid of." Kouga ran a hand back through his hair. "But I've waited eight years and I can wait longer."

"You're wasting your time. Go, marry Ayame."

"It's my time to waste."

"You need an heir to the throne."

"Then marry me," Kouga said simply.

Kagome's lips pressed into a thin line.

"You're better off with Ayame. Even if I accepted your proposal, the people wouldn't accept an assassin as their queen."

"I'll deal with it."

"It's not your decision."

Kouga brushed past her on his way back to the desk. He paused behind it, fingertips curling against the varnished wood.

"I will go because you've asked me, and not because I agree with you. Do me a favour Kagome, and ask yourself: what will you have when this is finally over?"

Kouga crouched beneath the desk and Kagome heard the trapdoor squeak as he showed himself out. She sank back into the settee and closed her eyes. Kagome already knew the answer to his question.

What would she have when this was all over?

Absolutely nothing.

An authoritative knocking sounded against his study door.

"Come in."

The door swung inwards.

"Your highness."

Kishiro, the captain of the guards, gave a low bow. Sesshoumaru sprinkled sand over the letter he'd just finished.

"Report."

"We've made good progress. All the slaves are in our custody, as well as every lady-in-waiting but two."

"Bring in a slave for questioning."

"There's no point, Your Highness."

Sesshoumaru shot Kishiro a hard look.

"And why is that?"

"Your mother preferred her slaves to be mutes."

"Hmm." Sesshoumaru mentally smacked himself in the head. He'd totally forgotten that, due to her liaisons, she only employed natural mutes or those whose tongues had been cut out.

"Then bring in a lady-in-waiting."

"Yes, my lord."

Kishiro retreated to the doorway and barked at one of his subordinates waiting outside. Soon, a lady-in-waiting was escorted into the room. She wore a simple dress with her hair put up in a messy bun.

Sesshoumaru raised a brow. She'd changed out of the flowing robes and headdress required of all his mother's ladies-in-waiting. When his mother went into banishment, all her ladies-in-waiting went with her. They were required to be covered completely, save for their eyes,as a symbol of their queen's disgrace.

"Your Highness."

The woman curtseyed. Her almond-shaped eyes of warm honey informed Sesshoumaru of her feline origins. His keen eyes caught the trembling of her clasped hands.

"Why did you run? You knew my guards would find you."

The woman dropped to her knees and touched her forehead to the ground.

"Mercy, Your Highness! I couldn't help myself. I was terrified! The Queen was dead and I knew they'd be looking for someone to blame." She began to weep, and crawled forwards to grab his leg. "I r-ran home, hoping my family would shield me till I could tell my side of the story." She sobbed. "I'm innocent!"

"Silence!"

The woman let go and pressed her forehead to the floor once more. Her tearful whimpers echoed in the silence of the study.

"Family can't shield a convict from the law," he said coldly. "You'd only bring them down with you in disgrace. Tell me everything you know."

Wiping away her tears, the woman sat back on her heels and began.

"Most of the ladies-in-waiting, myself included, were napping that afternoon. We felt faint from the heat and Evelyn told us to relax—"

"Who is Evelyn?"

"She's another one of us ladies-in-waiting."

"... Continue."

"She told us to rest and that she'd take care of the queen. We all went to nap and I was the first to wake. When I got to the main room, the Queen was already lying there, dead." Her voice began to tremble. "There was so much blood! I woke up the rest of the ladies and panic just spread. There was just... so much blood..."

The cat demoness covered her face and wound inwards, as though wishing herself into nonexistence. Sesshoumaru knew her shock wasn't feigned. The horror reflected in her face was too genuine for even for the most experienced thespian.

"Tell me about Evelyn."

"She was the Queen's favorite. Evelyn always knew what to do. She had the Queen's ear, and the Queen dismissed everyone except for the slaves to talk with her." The woman wrung her hands. "The rest of us suspected that Evelyn spied for the Queen."

"What does she look like?"

"We don't know. It's so hot in those veils, and we usually take them off when we're in private, but Evelyn... she never did. She bathed alone and slept with her face covered in some strange, green paste. Evelyn told us all that it was a secret beauty treatment from her country."

Sesshoumaru's gaze sharpened. "Her country?"

"Yes." The cat demoness paused. "She never said exactly where she was from, but everyone knew she wasn't Western. She was too exotic."

"Do you know who recommended her as a lady-in-waiting?"

"No. Evelyn just showed up one day. Neither she nor the Queen ever named her sponsor."

Sesshoumaru didn't have any further questions. He waved her off.

"Go home to your family, and stay there. Any attempts to leave the region will find you executed."

"Y-Yes, Your Highness." She gave a final bow and left.

The following interrogations yielded no further information. No one knew Evelyn's face or anything close to personal information. Evelyn, if that was her name at all, was an enigma. She'd somehow attached herself to his mother and held her fellow ladies-in-waiting at arm's length. If the servants agreed on anything, however, it was that Evelyn conducted herself like a noblewoman. Yet Sesshoumaru knew that mannerisms could be cultivated — no highborn lady would infiltrate his castle to assassinate his mother.

His investigation had hit a dead end. Save for the black handkerchief he'd found in his mother's bodice, Sesshoumaru had no clues as to her identity. Sesshoumaru had his retainer, Jaken, look through the catalogues of crests compiled of every known kingdom's nobility. Even that proved fruitless.

It confirmed Sesshoumaru's suspicion that she was a commoner only playing the part of a renegade noblewoman. He pulled the black handkerchief from his pocket for the thousandth time and just looked at it.

The immortal ivy and sprig of nightshade struck a chord within him. He felt that the answer was just out of his grasp. The crimson threads that looked so much like spilt blood mocked him. She mocked him.

Sesshoumaru realized that she was quickly becoming an obsession. He wound back his arm to throw the handkerchief into the fireplace. Then he remembered that it was in the middle of summer and that there was nothing in there but ashes. His mother would be rolling in her grave to know that her son had been bested by a human woman. A common human woman. Sesshoumaru tightened his fist around the handkerchief and sought the answer in flickering flame of the candle.

…..


	11. Chapter 11

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 11**_

Kagome was walking back to her rooms from the baths when she suddenly got grabbed in the hall. She let her assailant's momentum carry her weight and slammed her assailant against the wall. Her assailant gasped and Kagome barely pulled in her fist to break her assailant's nose when she recognized Princess Astasia.

"Tia!" Kagome said irritability as she lowered her fist. "I could have broken your nose!"

Tia grinned sheepishly.

"I had confidence that you would be able to pull in the blow in time.'

Kagome snorted.

"If not then I would have rearranged that cute button nose that you are so fond of." Kagome replied dryly.

Tia blushed.

"Out with it. What is with the ambush in the hallway?" Kagome demanded.

"Couldn't I be looking for you because I missed you?"

Kagome raised an eyebrow.

"I haven't seen you for months," she said defensively.

Kagome raised her other eyebrow.

"Alright! Alright! I need a slight favour." Tia dug her slippered toe into the thick carpet.

Kagome waited patiently for her to continue.

"I need you to translate a letter for me," she burst out in a stream of words.

Kagome crossed her arms.

"Why can't you ask one of your sisters to do it? Risa is the official translator in the family."

Tia blushed. Her oldest sister, Princess Charisa's favourite hobby was to translate ancient and modern texts. It was a well known fact that Risa spent all of her spare time cooped up with the kingdom's most famous scholars and monks. Whenever someone from another province sent over a letter in a different language, Risa would be called in translate. Her translating and writing skills even surpassed Kagome's skills. Kagome's own specialty lay with linguistics. The late King Lykakides had often joked that he would have to match Risa with a dusty scholar with the same interest as her or her husband would never see her.

"It's a letter of the highest delicacy."

Kagome sighed.

"Who's the love letter from?"

Tia stared openmouthed at Kagome.

"How did you guess?"

"It's obvious. Why else would you not ask Risa to translate it for you?"

"So will you help me?"

"Only if you tell me who's it from."

"I can't!"

Kagome rolled her eyes.

"I guess you don't want to know what he wrote to you."

She brushed by Tia to continue on her way to her rooms.

"OK! I'll tell you!" Tia cried out unhappily.

Kagome paused and turned to face her. Tia pressed her mouth into a thin line.

"I'm waiting."

"Not out here!"

Tia grabbed Kagome's hand and dragged her down the hallway to her own room. Kagome nodded to Merrick and Roc as she passed by them. They smirked as they watch Kagome get towed along by the headstrong princess. Tia popped them into her room and slammed the door shut with a loud bang. The walls vibrated with the force of her slam. Kagome winced and waited for the roof to fall down on them.

"Take that look off your face. I do that several times a day ever since I could shut my own doors."

"That is exactly why I am worried."

"Hmpf."

Somewhat convinced that the walls won't collapse, Kagome sprawled on one of Tia's lounge chairs. She propped her hands behind her head and crossed her legs. Tia saw her and scowled.

"Boots off my favourite chair!" Tia scolded. "Geez. You're just like Kouga and the guys."

Rolling her eyes, Kagome slipped off her boots.

"Don't group me in with them. I'm better looking and have more style and finesse in my little finger than all of them have combined," she scoffed.

Tia gave an unprincess like snort. She pulled a letter out of her bodice and handed it to Kagome.

"You should really rethink about storing things there. It's no fun to get a paper cut on your cleavage."

"And how would you know?"

"When is getting a paper cut anywhere fun?" Kagome countered.

"True enough. Just read it."

Kagome waved a finger at her.

"I don't think so. You forgot something, sister mine." Kagome smiled wickedly at her. "Pay up."

"He signed it at the bottom of the letter." She sighed dreamily.

Kagome looked at the bottom. "Lord Miroku. Isn't he the ambassador from the Western lands?"

"Yes." Tia clasped her hands under her chin and looked at Kagome with stars in her eyes. "He's so charming, handsome."

"And obviously an idiot for writing to you in a language that you didn't understand." Kagome ignored her.

Tia blushed and mumbled something.

"You told him that you could speak and read French?" Kagome asked disbelievingly. "You barely know enough French to get order your favourite dessert from a servant."

Tia glared at her. Kagome rolled her eyes and continued to read. Skimming the letter, she frowned at the mangled French. It was obvious that this Lord Miroku's French was not much better than Tia's own writing. The crease between her eyes deepened as she read the letter. Kagome had never read such sappy nonsense in her life! It was so sweet and romantic that she wanted to gag.

"So what does it say?"

"The biggest load of crap I've ever read. You're better off not hearing what he wrote. You'd have indigestion for a month from this sappy nonsense."

Kagome paused and her eyes widened. She couldn't believe that he actually put this in a love letter! This Lord Miroku is a pervert! She threw the letter down in disgust. Tia looked at her indignantly and clasped the letter to her bosom. Kagome would have felt that she had just kicked a puppy if she wasn't so disgusted.

"What did he say?" Tia put her hands on her hips. "That wasn't our bargain!" She shoved the letter into Kagome's face. "READ."

Kagome sighed and took the letter back from Tia.

"Dearest Princess Astasia. You are the rarest and the most beautiful rose in a garden of lilies. Your beauty has no comparison and your grace would put the swans to shame. Your eyes are like diamonds that sparkle brighter than even the sun. The laughter tumbling from your lips would thaw the coldest heart on this earth. If you asked it of me, I would climb up to the stars and bring down the moon to you. I would find the highest mountain in the four cardinal kingdoms and proclaim my love for you to the world. You are a Greek goddess of love that has come down to our world to grace mankind with your presence. You should be placed upon a pedestal to be worshipped. As unworthy as I am of your love, I could not bear it if you did not return my feelings. If you feel the slightest amount of emotion towards me then please say you would bear my child? Say yes. If you don't return my love, then I will throw myself off the highest tower in the Western lands with your name on my lips. Until we can meet again, I will look at the stars and take comfort in the fact that we are looking at the same stars from different ends of the earths. I count the days until I can gaze upon your lovely face. Sincerely, your completely devoted servant, Miroku."

Kagome threw the letter back onto the table. Tia sighed contentedly.

"It's too romantic."

"Romantic?" Kagome said disgustedly. "This man wants you to bear his child!"

"I know. It's wonderful. Miroku told me that he was an orphan and needed to beget an heir right away or his line ends with him."

Kagome was shocked to see actual tears in Tia's eyes.

"Are you serious? You actually buy this tragic, woeful tale he weaved for you?"

"Yes!"

Tia sighed dramatically.

"I thought you were smarter than that." Kagome stood up to her full 5'5" and waggled her finger at the moonstruck Tia. "You are a princess. He is just a minor lord trying to rise above his station in life. Don't let a few flowery phrases turn you into a slobbering fool."

"Not everyone is a cynic, Kagome! Don't you believe in love?"

"No."

"No?"

"No."

Tia looked at her in aghast.

"This is definitely not love. " Kagome jabbed her finger in the direction of the letter. "One does not fall head over heels in love after one meeting."

"It was twice." Tia argued hotly.

"Listen to yourself!" Kagome threw up her hands. "There's not point talking reason with you. I'm leaving."

Kagome slipped on her boots and walked to the door.

"And there is no point talking to you! You...you don't believe in love!" Sputtered Tia.

Kagome paused on the threshold of the suite.

"If this is how one turns into a fool when they are in love then I rather not be afflicted with this disease."

...

Kagome closed the door behind her and walked across the hall to her own room. She pulled out her key and noticed some movement from the corner of her eye. Kagome twisted to point her key menacingly at the approaching man. The messenger gulped and stared down the key. Kagome lowered her key.

"Don't sneak up on me like that," she muttered. "I didn't get enough sleep."

"My apologies, Lady Kagome!" The messenger squeaked. "Princess Kalynn has a matter of the highest importance to discuss with you! She's waiting for you in her suites."

Sighing, Kagome replaced her unused key in her pocket. She nodded to the messenger and moved several doors down the hall to Lyn's suites. Kagome knocked loudly on the solid oak door.

"Come in!" A muffled voice called out from inside.

Kagome grasped the knob and pushed open the door. The first thing she saw was Lyn sitting at her desk with her head in her hands. Kagome gently eased the door closed behind her.

"Are you alright?" She asked worriedly and hurried to Lyn's side. "You don't look so well."

Kagome felt Lyn's forehead for fever. Lyn looked up with a sardonic smile.

"I'm fine. It's about time you got here. You know how I get a headache every time I look at French."

"Indeed."

"I have been trying to figure this out all morning. I sent messengers around the castle looking for you but no one could find you since you were obviously in your lair again. Could you please translate this for me?"

"Very well. I am curious to see what would give you such a headache."

"This."

Kagome immediately recognized the messy, loopy scrawl.

"When did you get this?" Kagome demanded.

"This morning."

Kagome threw down the letter in disgust.

"Hey! I waited all morning for you and the least you can do is read it."

"I don't have to," Kagome said disgustedly. "I can tell you exactly what he said. It's something along the lines of calling you a goddess and asking you to bear his child. Tia got exactly the same letter from him today too."

"That conniving, rotten rat bastard," growled Lyn. "He fed me that shit about being all alone in the world. I'll love to get my hands on him and cut off his _precious _family jewels."

"I'm glad you think so." Kagome said dryly. "Tia found his offer very romantic."

"That girl always had more fluff than brains."

Lyn grabbed the letter off the table and moved to the fireplace. Kagome watched in confusion as Lyn placed the letter in the fireplace. Lyn crouched down with a flint in her hand.

"Don't burn the letter!" Kagome cried.

"Wha-"

Lyn struck her thumb instead of the flint. She cursed colourfully and looked at Kagome reproachfully.

"Sorry," Kagome apologized sheepishly. "Can I have the letter to show to Tia?"

"Go ahead."

Lyn handed the slightly sooty letter to Kagome. Kagome folded the letter in half and tucked into a side pocket in her tunic. She took a seat at Lyn's desk and made herself comfortable.

"So what has my favourite sister been doing for the past few months other than getting accosted by amorous lords?" Kagome asked nonchalantly.

"Nothing at it. It's the same old boring things happening at the castle. The Western heir has been the most talked about subject for the past week. People gossiping and conniving elaborate plots about how to smuggle their daughters into the Western kingdom." Lyn rolled her eyes. "They think that once the heir lays his eyes on their daughter, he will fall instantly in love with her and marry her. My favourite plot I've heard so far was to get into the palace rolled in a carpet."

"What is your plan for getting into the palace?"

Lyn waved her hand dismissively.

"I'm bored but not bored enough to ship myself off wrapped up as a present. You make it sound like I get accosted in the hallway at every turn. Life would be more interesting if I did." Lyn smiled wickedly and cracked her knuckles. "I need some practice."

"Talking about getting accosted, Tia jumped me in the hallway."

Lyn winced.

"Stupid girl. You didn't hurt her right?"

"Of course not." Kagome said testily. "I'm better than that!"

"No one would blame you if you did. She should know better than to grab someone. Never mind you. That girl is going to get herself killed one day." Lyn moved to where a tea set was located. "Would you like some tea?"

"I'd love some."

Lyn made them both some tea and handed Kagome both cups. She watched silently as Kagome tested the tea for poison. Satisfied that it was safe, she handed a cup back to Lyn. Kagome sipped her tea and sighed contentedly. There was nothing quite like the tea back at home.

"So what has been happening on your end? Has "business" been going well?"

Lyn sipped her own tea and watched Kagome over the rim of her tea cup.

"Well enough." Kagome sighed.

Lyn left it at that. Lyn and Kouga were the only ones in the family who knew about her real position. Everyone else in the kingdom assumed that Kagome took over her father's role as an ambassador. Lyn knew because she was Kagome's best friend and Kagome had told her. Kouga knew because he was her king.

"Have you been drinking again?" She asked softly.

Lyn was also the only one who knew the toll that killing exacted on Kagome. The only one who knew until Kouga stumbled onto her last night.

"Yes. Kouga found the passage and I drunkenly let him in."

Lyn winced.

"You do know that Kouga only wants the best for you."

"No. Kouga wants to run my life."

Lyn sighed.

"He still loves you."

"I know." Kagome laughed humorlessly. "Who would have thought that he still would even after I refused him eight years ago? I thought that I was like his favourite toy that he would forget the next week. I never thought that his obsession would have lasted so long."

"You underestimate yourself. He has already put off honoring the betrothal contract that was done at his birth between him and Ayame."

"Kouga is too stubborn. I told him again and again that he was better off with Ayame but he insists that all he wants is me," Kagome said sourly.

Lyn laughed.

"He just sounds like someone else I know. Would it be so bad to marry him?"

"You of all people should know that I have no time in my life for anyone."

"I know." Lyn hesitated. "Are you sure about this revenge business? You may not get out of this with your life."

"It's done," she said simply.

"That's where you are wrong, Kagome." Lyn said softly. "Revenge is never done."

Kagome had no reply for Lyn's comment.

"Let's not talk about revenge anymore. Tell me about what I have missed these few months."

As obliging as always, Lyn filled her up to date with the latest events that happened in the castle. Kagome felt comforted by listening to her sister chatter but it did nothing to fill the void in her heart.

...


	12. Chapter 12

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 12**_

A hot bath, change of clothes and a dinner of her favourite foods did much to change Kagome's disposition on life. After a cheery dinner with the rest of her sisters, Kagome retreated to her lair. She entered her father's library and pulled out the skewed volume of Caedeus. Kagome straightened the row of books after the passageway slid open. She still wasn't sure how Kouga found the secret panel and figured out the lock. He must have been secretly following her. Mentally shrugging to herself, she walked through the passageway without paying heed to the glowing fungus. Unclasping her locket, she slid it into place and activated the slab.

Kagome skimmed an eye over the mess from the night before. After doing some quick housekeeping, Kagome collapsed into her father's favourite chair behind her desk. Shortly after his passing, she moved his chair down to the lair she had inherited. Even though he was gone for several years now, the chair still retained her father's comforting scent of sandalwood. If she closed her eyes, she could imagine that she was still 10 years old and sitting on his lap with his arms wrapped around her.

Kagome sighed resignedly and opened her eyes. One could only live in dreams and the past for only so long. There was work to be done. Kagome reached behind her and pulled out the stack of letters stashed in the bookshelf. She already knew every word by heart.

Ever since that fateful day when she had been kidnapped, the assassination attempts happened less frequently and ended up stopping all together. Her father easily thwarted each attempt on their lives with the assassins taken the dungeons to be interrogated. Her foster family teased her about being more notorious than Several passed in relative peace but her father insisted that he continue Kagome's education just in case. He had held true to his belief that they would never give up on a marked target. He was right. On the night of the 19th birthday, she was sleeping in her bed when an assassin had crept into her room and slipped a garrote over her head. The only reason that she survived was because she had hand under her pillow where her dagger was hidden. She had struck out blindly and stabbed her assassin in the eye by pure chance. That was the first man she killed.

Kagome had not suffered much through her near brush with death other than shaken nerves and a thin red scar around her neck. She thought that a scar was a small price to pay for escaping with her life. Every time she looked at herself in the mirror, she would be reminded of all the crimes the Western Lands heaped upon her family. The assassination attempt had shaken her father more than herself. It was the first time that an assassin gotten through the special guards that he had especially assigned to Kagome's room at night. He had left the very next day to deal with this matter personally. Kagome became his liaison back at home. They exchanged corresponded through the lesser known channels during this absence. Her father had came home briefly for special occasions such as her birthday and then left shortly after. Each time, Kagome would beg him to stay longer and then he should kiss her on the cheek tenderly and tell her that it would be soon over. Whenever Kagome demanded to know what would be soon over, he would smile mysteriously and leave.

One day, his letters stopped coming. He had promised that he would visit in about a week's time. A week changed into two weeks and two weeks became a month. Kagome worried fretfully and had pounced on one of her father's trusted messengers when she finally saw him. With his face set in sorrow, he handed Kagome her mother's locket. Her father had been ambushed on his way back to the Eastern lands. After taking a sword through the middle, Lord Higurashi forced Piers to leave and deliver the locker to Kagome. It was the last present that Kagome ever gotten from him.

After receiving the locket, Kagome understood that her father had chosen her as his successor. Piers had dropped to a knee and sworn his loyalty. Numbly, Kagome gone to Lykakaides that very night with the news. Lykakides offered her the post and Kagome had accepted. She spent the next few days mourning for her father. When she emerged, she was not the same. A hardened woman had replaced the carefree court lady. What has been lost can never be regained.

Melancholy from her memories, Kagome shuffled through the letters one by one. Even though she already knew the words by heart, she meticulously read through each of the letter, word by word. Kagome had come upon these letters a year after she took over his position. She had accidentally knocked over a cup of water. She jumped up and banged her knee on the desk. A hidden compartment in her father's desk fell out. After cleaning up the water spill, she discovered that the secret compartment had held her father's diary and a collection of letters from the Queen of the Western lands before his banishment and several dated after the incident.

After reading the letters and the diary, Kagome had finally unveiled the complete story of her past. The Queen Kaori had written many love letters to her father. His dark good looks and his aura of mystery had drawn Queen Kaori's eye. She wanted him in her bed. What the queen wanted, she expected to get. When her father refused, Queen Kaori retaliated by destroying the one thing that had separated them.

The latter letters explained the lies that Queen Kaori had told King Inutashio. Queen Kaori's spies had found out that her father killed his father-in-law to save the family name. She went crying to Inutashio with this information and branded him a traitor along with his father-in-law. Kaori wept that Lord Higurashi also tried to force himself on her. She showed him the marks that she inflicted on herself to make her story viable. Inutashio believed her and condemned his best friend and his family to die on the word of a woman.

For the next two years, Kagome dedicated her life to assassinating the queen. She learned their customs and infiltrated into the castle. After so many years, her hardwork had finally paid off several days ago. Yet, she was not done. Kagome read the last line in her father's diary again.

_King Inutashio may have been fooled by his queen but it was still his hand that ordered Akiko's death. For this I will never forgive him._

...

Kagome had showed Tia the love letter Lyn received and Tia accused her of duplicating the letter to keep her apart from Miroku. After much screaming, Tia had stormed into her bedchamber and slammed the door behind her. Lyn and Kagome shrugged and continued on with their life but an idea had already formed in Kagome's mind.

This ambassador appeared to the be the philandering rake of the highest class. Kagome didn't doubt for a minute that dozens if not hundreds of other women have received the exact same letter. A man like him wouldn't be able to keep his hands to himself. He probably used to dealing with irate women. Lord Miroku played with fire and it was about time for him to get burned.

Kagome spent the next month in the castle recuperating from her latest overindulgence and setting her plans in motion. She commissioned masks of every possible sort and ordered new gowns for every occasion. Kagome's post as spymaster offered her a virtually unlimited stipend but for this business, she didn't use any money but her own. She managed the state affairs and left everything in the very capable hands of her second-in-command, Piers. Kagome sparred with Kouga's bodyguards and lovingly cared for all her weapons. She was just in the middle of packing her weapons and poisons when someone knocked on her door. Kagome pushed off her knees and answered the door herself. Ever since the first attempt on her life, Kagome had refused to have a personal maid. Especially because of her position, she knew exactly how easily it was to bribe a servant to talk. Loyalty was cheap. Kagome didn't trust anyone other than Piers not to sell her out. Her foster brothers and sisters were so sheltered that they wouldn't even knew if they told someone something about Kagome that they weren't supposed to. That was why only Lyn and Kouga knew her secret.

Kagome clipped a sheathed dagger at the back of her pants and eased the door open a crack. When she saw the royal livery of a messenger, she opened the door completely.

"Yes?"

"Greetings Lady Kagome." The messenger bowed. "A message for you from Lady Ayame. She invites you to have tea with her at the fourth hour." The messenger said politely.

Kagome sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was to have tea with Kouga's betrothed. The capricious redhead was irrevocably in love with Kouga and prone to fits of jealousy. It did not help matters that Kouga openly declared his love for Kgaome. He had been putting off their betrothal from the cradle for years now. Ayame always liked to subject Kagome to an interrogation every time she returned from a trip. Kagome thought had escaped Ayame's customary summoning when she had not received a message from her for over three weeks. Declining the invitation would not do any good either. Ayame always showed up to interrogate her one way or another. It would be better for Kagome to deal with Ayame now. Just like ripping off a bandage stuck to a wound.

"Tell Lady Ayame that I will be there," Kagome said wearily and closed the door. She walked back into her bedroom to get changed.

...

"Milk or sugar?"

"Both."

Kagome clasped her hands together as she watched Ayame play the part of a perfect hostess and serve them both tea. Kagome accepted her cup with a murmur of thanks.

"So, Kagome. What have you been up to?"

"The same old."

Kagome sipped at her tea. Ayame sipped delicately at her own with the saucer held in her left and the cup carefully balanced between her thumb and forefinger. Kagome stamped out the urge to roll her eyes. Ayame had always been the jealous sort. Daughter of one of the leading lords before the kingdom unified under the rule of King Lykakides, by her own right should have been a princess. The first time Ayame ever laid eyes on Kagome, she had taken an intense dislike to her. During her frequent visits to the castle, Ayame always picked on Kagome and saw her as a rival even when Kagome was a nine year old tomboy dressed in boy clothes. The 10 year old Ayame had already sensed what Kagome only found out eight years ago. Sick of being constantly picked on by what Kagome considered a featherbrained twit, she had decided antagonize Ayame and dress up like the rival Ayame accused of being. For Kouga's birthday. she had been decked out in a pretty dress of pink satin and white lace. She had the satisfaction of seeing Kouga's eyes bulge out and Ayame's narrow in a glare of hatred. Ayame had watched Kagome like a hawk eyeing it's prey after that. What had been mild bullying had flared out into a full out complete war. Kagome has been trying to convince Ayame that she didn't feel anything for Kagome for the next ten years of her life.

"I see you are playing dress up in your men's clothes." Ayame said disdainfully.

"You should try them sometime," Kagome said smoothly. "They are a lot more comfortable. I don't know how you manage to move under all those layers of silk!"

Ayame's eyes flashed. She had caught Kagome's subtly inserted innuendo suggesting that she was fat.

"We women manage."

Kagome put down her tea and reached for a biscuit. Digs at her sexuality never bothered her. Lyn even joked for Kagome to court Ayame to get Ayame off her case. Kagome had dryly replied that she might actually be successful and then have an ardent Ayame in love with her. That would open another can of worms. Kagome was comfortable with who she was. Could the same be said of Ayame? Kagome bit into her biscuit and almost moaned from the buttery taste of the biscuit melting in her mouth.

"What is this? It's wonderful."

Ayame smiled gloatingly.

"It's called shortbread. It's a secret recipe from my home province."

"Could your cook be bribed to share it with Piers?"

"Doubtful. Cook guards her recipes jealously." Ayame sniffed.

Kagome snickered inwardly. What Ayame didn't know was that more than half her household was on Kagome's payroll. They were expensive but Kagome convinced herself that it was for Kouga's safety that she had eyes watching Ayame and not because of a silly childhood feud. Kagome smirked into her teacup, that coveted recipe was as good as hers.

"What are you smiling about? Please do share."

"I'm just thinking about the present I am going to get Kouga for his birthday." Kagome lied fluently.

She had the pleasure of watching Ayame turn red. Kagome felt sorry for the woman for her devotion to Kagome but antagonizing her was too much fun to pass up. Ayame would have to work much harder to conceal her emotions if she was to be Kouga's queen. Kagome noticed Ayame's white knuckled grip on her dress.

"And what are you planning to get him?" Ayame gritted out between clenched teeth.

"Oh. Nothing special."

Kagome popped another one of those heavenly biscuits into her mouth. She melted and reached for another. Ayame childishly grabbed the tray out of her reach.

"No more until you tell me." Ayame demanded

Kagome sat back nonchalantly and wiped her fingers on a napkin.

"Oh, my dear Ayame. I was about to share it with you anyways." Kagome mocked her. "But I don't know anymore since you're being so mean about it."

Kagome felt so evil when Ayame flushed a deep red that bordered into purple. Baiting Ayame had always made her feel good. Risa had always berated her for stooping to such petty antics. Kagome had listened to it all and immediately resumed to "baiting the wolf." Every time she wandered too close to pushing Ayame too far, her father's warning came forth in her mind. _Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely._

Deciding to put Ayame out of her misery, Kagome answered her truthfully, "I haven't given a thought to it."

"Well, you should!" Burst out Ayame. "His birthday is only a month away. I got the best present for him!" Ayame said superiorly and clapped her hand over her mouth.

"I see." Kagome said dryly. "I won't even be here for his birthday."

"But it's his 25th birthday!" Ayame said aghast.

"Birthdays happen every year. I don't even know what is the fuss. Why would people celebrate that they are a year older and closer to dying?"

"It sounds like you're afraid of dying, Kagome."

"No. It's easy to die. It is living that scares me." Kagome stood up. "Thank you for the tea. I must get back to packing." Kagome bowed to her. "Have a good day."

She could Ayame's eyes boring in her as she left. Kagome was aware that she left Ayame with even more questions than before. Mentally shrugging, she headed back to her rooms.

...

"What do you have to report?" Sesshoumaru's voice cut across the room.

"Nothing at all, Your Highness." The lizard demon on front of him said with a quaver in his voice. "It was as if he vanished into thin air."

"How do you know that the assassin was a male?"

"It couldn't been a woman." The lizard squeaked. "There is no way that a woman could have overpowered Her late Majesty."

"You're useless."

Sesshoumaru flicked his fingers and his green energy whip flashed through the room. With deadly precision, he took the head off the lizard demon.

"Jaken." He called.

His retainer sidestepped over the rapidly cooling body and bowed to his lord.

"Yes, Lord Sesshoumaru?"

"Change the rug."

"Yes, my lord."

Jaken stuck his head out the door and barked orders at some passing servants. The body was taken away and another rug.

"Anything else, my lord?"

Sesshoumaru waved him out the door. His retainer bowed once more and closed the door firmly behind him. More than a month later and there has been absolutely no new information. Who ever had done it was a professional. There was absolutely no scent left behind to track. It was as if the assassin vanished into thin air. Each of the men he had sent out to follow up on leads gave him dead ends. Their incompetence was taxing. They had all insisted that it was a man that must have done it. Yet all the clues lead to his mother's lady-in-waiting. No man would have used poison and then executed his mother in such a manner. His mother's murder was one of revenge. Sesshoumaru curled his fingers around the handkerchief that had taken up permanent residence in his pocket. _Nightshade_ the court gossips had called the assassin. Sesshoumaru had his own name for her. _Belladonna..._

...


	13. Chapter 13

_****I apologize for the short chapter. I am currently in LA and have been very busy. I will post up a longer chapter on Tuesday.****_

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 13**_

...

What she told Ayame was true. Kagome was more afraid of living than dying. It took no courage to die. It just happens. It was the living that had to deal with the aftermath. Kagome slipped in a package of carefully wrapped _shurikens _with her commissioned clothing. She stashed her precious vials of carefully selected poisons into her jewelry box along with her jewels and earrings. Each piece of jewelry had a hidden cache within it to store poison. Others pieces like her hair accessories and several pairs of earrings were actually daggers or poisoned darts. Men never realized that she was quite literally a walking weapon gallery. Even now, Kagome had a hidden dagger tucked into her boot and a trigger blade hidden in the toe of her boot. Her thighs felt naked without her sais. Kouga had forbidden her to wear her sais in public but he never said anything about daggers.

Kagome shook out one of the dresses she received this morning and her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. The garment in her hand was in pieces. The first part was a rich embroidered wrap that covered her breasts and had strips of fabric that would cover her midriff until she moved. The bottom half was not any better. It was a skirt with extremely high slits cutting on front, side _and the back_. The one didn't have enough fabric to be considered a dress! Even her underwear covered more of her! She snagged the note lying on the floor several feet away.

"Dear Lady Kagome," she read. "Here are the costumes you requested. This is the style of dress currently popular in the Eastern lands. Do not be alarmed. They cover more than they appear. Yours sincerely, Arabelle the head seamstress."

Kagome crushed the note and threw it aside.

"I'm going to strangle her." Kagome muttered.

She was planning to leave tomorrow morning and it would take Arabelle and her army of seamstresses at least another two weeks to make her a completely new wardrobe. Half dreading what the rest of the wardrobe would look like, Kagome shifted through the rest of the dresses. She relaxed as the rest of the dresses revealed themselves to be of the less revealing Eastern style that she was familiar with. It was only that one dress was done of in that scandalous style. She had given Arabelle strict orders to adhere to the classical Eastern template so where did this scandalous outfit come from? Eastern women generally wore beautiful, trailing embroidered robes over a simple full length dress. The dress had a simple bodice that bared the shoulders and ended with a broad colourful sash. The skirt split over to reveal another skirt. Under the layers of skirts, the women still wore a pair of thin silk pants for modesty sake.

Kagome had stumbled upon the Eastern styles of dress for men and women years ago when her father brought back some clothes for her. Falling in love at first sight, she adapted attire that was a cross between the men and female clothing. It was the perfect marriage of comfort and movement. The robe that Kagome had worn to banquets for years originated from the East. This was why she chose her alter-ego to be from the East.

Kagome frowned at the offending dress in her hand. This had no place in among the other dignified dresses. Gathering up the separate bodice and the skirt in her head, she marched through the castle to find Arabelle.

Ten minutes later, she stood at the threshold of Arabelle's private domain. Her army of seamstresses were working diligently on all sorts of clothing imaginable. No one bothered to look up at her entrance. Kagome knocked on the doorframe and was ignored. Starting to get irritated, Kagome cleared her throat loudly. All conversion and work stopped as Kagome found herself at the center of attention.

"Where is Arabelle?" She asked smoothly.

A forest of hands pointed towards the back and the productive chaos resumed. Picking her way carefully through the mess of fabric, women and needles, she made her way to the room in the back. After managing Arabelle's first line of defense, she tapped loudly on the doorframe.

"What is it, Kagome?" Arabelle said irritably without looking up from the dress she was drafting.

Kagome wordlessly tossed her outfit onto the table. Arabelle made a noise of dismay at the crumpled silk. One of her assistants behind her actually burst into tears. Kagome maintained the composure of a rock throughout their theatrics.

"You should be decapitated for what you did to this beautiful silk! It's the finest cloth imported from the East!" Arabelle accused as she clasped the garment to her bosom.

Kagome yawned.

"Are done yet?"

"ARGH!" Arabelle threw up her hands. "I don't even know why I make dresses for you when you abuse them like this!"

"This isn't a dress!" Kagome retorted. "I've seen harem girls from the South wear more!"

"No, they don't!" Arabelle said exasperatedly. "Most of the time, they just walk around in nipple tassels and beaded skirts."

Kagome held up a hand.

"I'm not going to ask how you know that."

"Knock it off. Have you tried this?" Arabelle demanded.

"No."

"Well, you should."

"Leila is the one who told me to make this for you. It's your dancing costume."

Kagome eyed it with new foreboding.

"My dancing costume?" She repeated. "I won't even wear that in private. Never mind wear it in public to perform in front of a crowd!"

Arabelle shrugged.

"This is what Lelia told me to make." Arabelle stuck her head out the door. "Ah. Here she comes herself!"

"What is all this fuss, Ara?" Asked Leila with an exotic accent that gave away her origins from the South.

Arabelle pointed at Kagome.

"She came in here making a fuss about your costume."

Lelia picked up the costume and crooned.

"This is exquisite, Ara! You have surpassed all my expectations!"

Arabelle glowed with a creator's satisfaction. Kagome cleared her throat loudly.

"There is no way I can wear this in public."

"Why not my _labrisa_? Everything is covered is it not?"

Leila crossed her arms over her ample chest.

"It's so scandalous!" Kagome cried.

"I never thought you of all people would be a prude!" Leila shook her head. "What is wrong with shoving a bit of leg and bosom, _labrisa?_ You have beautiful, long legs. It's a shame that you don't show them off enough."

Kagome spluttered and opened her mouth to speak. Leila cut her off.

"What's the point of ask me to teach you dance if you don't perform?"

Leila picked up the skirt and sighed blissfully as the strips of fabric fluttered around.

"I wish I could have worn this back in my dancing days." Leila said blissfully.

Kagome groaned.

s

"Be thankful, my _labrisa." _Leila wagged her finger in Kagome's face. "Just take the costume with you on your trip to the East. I assure you that you will be glad that you brought it."

Kagome sighed.

"Yes Leila." She said sullenly.

"Perfect, my _labrisa._

...


	14. Chapter 14

_****Helloo everyone! Here is the promised massive chapter! I made it EVEN LONGER than I planned since you guys have been wonderful with your reviews and I have now hit the triple digits on ffn! Much love and enjoy!"**_

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 14**_

Kagome slipped out of the passageway and knocked on the trapdoor above her head. She waited for the snorting and shuffling above to stop before pushing open the trapdoor. She peeked through the crack and checked to make sure that no one was around. Certain that the coast was clear; she opened the trapdoor the rest of the way. Kagome pulled herself out and smiled at the warm, friendly black gaze of her black stallion.

"Hello, Dreamfire."

Her stallion whickered and whuffed at her bangs. Kagome grinned and ruffled his forelock. Brushing the hay off her cape, she stuck a hand out to release the lock on Dreamfire's stall. Working quickly in the dark, Kagome had Dreamfire saddled and ready to go within minutes. Pulling out padding from her pocket, Kagome muffled Dreamfire's hooves. She took a hold of his bridle and lead Dreamfire out of the stables. In the middle of the night, there was not a soul in the stables except for dozing stable boy on a pallet down the hallway. Careful to not wake up the boy, Kagome silently mounted Dreamfire and slipped off silently into the night.

...

A figure lounged against the window and watched Kagome disappear into the night.

"What do you think she is going to do this time?" Lyn asked Kouga quietly from her spot by the window.

"What she always goes to do." Kouga tossed back the rest of the wine in his cup. "It's not like I could stop her."

"Have you ever tried?"

"Every single time." Kouga sighed. "I'm just wasting my breath."

"True. You grew up with her. You should know exactly what Kagome is like. You two are like fire and water. You tell her to do something and she will do exactly the opposite just to spite you. Have you ever thought about supporting her -"

"Supporting her?" Kouga said harshly. "Do you know what she did the last time she took off? She assassinated the Queen of the Western lands."

He looked at Lyn. She gazed back at him with no sign of reaction on her face.

"Why do I get the feeling that you are trying to alienate me from Kagome?" She asked calmly. "She has never told you the full story of her past. She has a very good reason for her actions."

"A good reason?" He snarled. "Every kingdom has its own share of tragic history. If everyone gave in to his or her vengeful tendencies then we would be plunged into the dark ages with the massacre. What is the point of all this bloodbath? Do you actually believe that these assassinations will bring her family back to life? She will bring the wrath of the Western Lands down on our heads."

Lyn crossed her arms.

"Is this what you've been worried about all this time? You of all people should know that Kagome would not admit any association to us even under torture."

"I know." Kouga put his head in his hands. "My mind is glad that Kagome won't involve us but my heart trembles at the thought of her dying in a dungeon somewhere because she's too prideful to tell them of her identity. If they don't know who she is...they can't send me a ransom note." Kouga gazed at Lyn with blank, haunted eyes. "I don't what I would do if I lose her."

Lyn walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You are already losing her by pushing her to leave this matter alone."

"I rather she hate me than be dead." He said bitterly.

"And she rather be dead than to face her family in the afterlife without trying."

"Doesn't she understand that her family wouldn't want her to do this?" Cried Kouga. "I've known her father for most of my own life. I am certain that he wouldn't want her to do this. He'd want her to live."

"You are right." Lyn agreed. "He wouldn't want Kagome to be going through this but this is her birthright. It's in her blood. Their line is just as blue as ours."

"That-"

"Have you ever thought about what you would do yourself if someone killed all of us and left you all alone in this world?"

"She not alone." He argued hotly. "She has us."

"Yes, she has us." Lyn agreed. "We are her family but no one can replace the mother and father than she lost. Did you also know that her mother was pregnant when they killed her?"

Kouga fell silent.

"You need to grow up, Kouga. You have taken the kingship for more than a year but you still thinking like a kid. Kagome was forced to grow up years before her time." Lyn looked hard at Kouga. "That is why she doesn't need you to harass her."

"I understand." Kouga opened his mouth and hesitated.

"What is it?"

"Has..Kagome ever talked to you about my proposal."

"Yes."

"It is exactly as she says isn't it." He asked quietly.

Lyn nodded. Kouga sighed and crossed his hands behind his head.

"Do you remember that story of the man and the nightingale?" Noting Kouga's confusion, she continued. "Once upon a time in a distant land, a man had found a dying nightingale in his garden. Struck by the nightingale's tragic beauty, he brought it back into his home and nursed it back to health. He loved it with all his heart and crafted a huge golden cage to be put in his bedroom. The nightingale recovered completely but sang less and less everyday.

Worried for his songbird, the man asked the nightingale, "What is wrong? Your injury has recovered but you sing less and less everyday."

The nightingale said to the man, "You have my undying gratitude saving my life. My body is well but my soul yearns for the freedom of the blue skies. As big and as beautiful as the home you have crafted me, it is still a cage."

The man fell silent and considered the nightingale's words. Nodding in acceptance, he opened the cage and let the nightingale go. The nightingale flew out of the man's house and perched on a branch of the sakura tree beside the man's house. Before his astonished eyes, the nightingale transformed into a beautiful woman.

She said to him, "You have given me my freedom and now I chose to be with you forever."

The man helped the woman out of the tree and they lived happily ever after.

Lyn took a deep breath. "Kagome is just like the nightingale in the story. You have to let her go."

"It's easier said then done. There is no guarantee that she will come back like the nightingale in the story."

"You are right. No one has ever said that the path to love was easy. That is why you have to ask yourself whether you love her enough to let her go."

"I don't know." He admitted.

After that, it was silent in the room as both royal siblings were lost in the world of their own thoughts.

...

"Who goes there?" Asked one of the two guards pointing their spears at her approach.

Kagome reached up into the folds of her cloak and flashed a handkerchief. Her crimson crest flashed red in the flickering torchlight. The two soldiers lowered their spears and bowed from waist down.

"Welcome, my lord." The two men chorused.

Backing away, they signaled the men above to open the gates. The gate slowly creaked open as it was let down from the inside. The guards stood off to either side to let her enter. Kagome nodded and nudged Dreamfire forward with a twitch of her heel. She could feel the guards' intent scrutiny as she passed by. Her crest enabled her access to any part of the kingdom without any questions asked. The guards have been trained to recognize her crest but they were not enlightened to her identity and the significance behind it. No matter how well trained they were, their curiosity always got the better of them. Kagome was aware that they actually had an ongoing bet about her true identity. Each one always attempted to catch a glimpse of her face but Kagome guarded her true identity carefully behind the cowl of her cape. As the saying went, "_Curiosity killed the cat." _They were better off not knowing.

She entered the fort and slipped off Dreamfire. A stable hand ran forward and Kagome relinquished Dreamfire's reins to him. Giving a Dreamfire an affectionate rub, she left the care of her stallion in another's hands. She came here often enough to know that Dreamfire would be treated well. Kagome continued on foot towards the fortress' main stronghold. The guards nodded at her as she slipped past them to enter the stronghold. A man was already waiting her at the threshold. For the once, it was someone that Kagome didn't recognize. His crisp new uniform betrayed the man's recent promotion to the rank of captain. The man snapped her a crisp salute.

"Greetings, my lord. The commander awaits you in his quarters."

Kagome inclined her head and motioned for him to lead the way. The man turned on his heel and led her through the stronghold. Her guide was more of a nod towards formality than by necessity. The commander was more than aware that Kagome knew the layout of the fortress down to the very last stone. It was important for an assassin to know the terrain and Kagome committed them all to memory.

The captain knocked solidly on the wooden door. A voice barked out for them to enter. The captain pushed open the door and gestured for Kagome to enter before him. Kagome swept past him and into the room.

A thickset man with salt and pepper hair was hunched over his too small desk with paper covering every square inch. Noting Kagome's arrival, he pushed out of his chair and stood up.

"You may go." He said with a gruff dismissal. The captain snapped a sharp salute and turned on his heel. Despite his apparent discipline, Kagome still sensed the captain's hesitance to leave the room. The young man left the room and closed the door behind him.

Kagome turned her attention back to the man in front of her. The commander of the border fortress was a huge man. Easily over six and a half feet tall, it was no wonder how the man commanded order from his men. Powerfully built with broad shoulders and wide chest, he was shaped like a tank and was probably as impenetrable as the fortress he commanded. Commander Kraken had built himself an impressive reputation for being unstoppable on the battlefield. Like the eclipse that blocked out the sun, he struck fear into the heart of his enemies. A sweep of his gigantic broadsword was said to strike down dozens of enemies at once. Despite the fact that his days as an army soldier were long over, he still retained the extremely fit and muscular form of his youth. Kagome knew that he still drilled every morning with his soldiers. Even though he was past his prime, he was still considered one of the deadliest men in the kingdom.

"What brings you here, my dear? For business or pleasure?"

Kagome placed a finger to her lips. Her boots were silent on the stone floor as she strode to the door. She opened the door without warning and the captain that had escorted her went sprawling into the room. He looked sheepishly at her and the commander. When he realized that no one was laughing, he picked himself off the floor and stood stiff with fear.

"I am so sorry, my Lord Comm-." He sputtered.

"Silence. You will not speak unless you are spoken to, Captain Terre."

The young man quivered with over-arousal and fear. Commander Kraken moved from behind his desk to face the captain.

"Do you know what we do with eavesdroppers? We cut out their tongue so he won't be able to tell a soul and their ears do he won't ever be able to eavesdrop again."

The young man turned pale with fear. The commander took his dagger and ran his finger along its sharp edge. He watched his captain the way a hawk would eye his prey. To his credit, the captain didn't flinch. Commander Kraken turned to Kagome.

"You caught him. What do you propose we do with him?"

Kagome stayed silent. The captain was not her man to discipline. It was none of her business how the commander dealt with his men. She stuck her gloved hand out and communicated with the commander in the silent language of signs. He nodded in acknowledgement.

"Twenty flogs."

"But sir, I didn't hear anything!" The captain protested.

"In public first thing tomorrow morning in front of the recruits," the commander amended. "I will not have fools under my command. Take this mercy as lesson."

Two soldiers materialized out of nowhere and took the offender away. The door closed and they were alone once again.

"You think I'm too lenient."

"It is not my place to say." Kagome pushed back her cowl. "I neither approve or disapprove."

"But your thoughts are written all over your face."

Kagome smiled.

"That is where you are wrong."

"Hmpf. You are just like your father." The commander took his seat back behind his desk again. The chair creaked ominously under his great weight. "I assume you are on business then."

"Couldn't I be here to visit my dear uncle?" She teased.

The commander guffawed with laughter.

"Save your charm and wiles for the young dandies. I presume you wouldn't be wearing your reaper costume and come in the middle of the night just to pay me a visit."

"How very shrewd of you."

"One doesn't live to be my age without being cautious." He yawned. "Out with it, dear. This old body is not as vigorous as it used to be."

Kagome eyed him skeptically but complied.

"I was wondering whether you have heard anything of interest lately."

The commander crossed his fingers.

"Why are you asking me?" He asked curiously. "You probably know better than myself."

Kagome took a seat.

"I know better than to base all my information on only one account."

"Ah...The three sides of the story. Your father was a wise man. I've always thought that he should have been a Lord of Justice."

"Thank you."

The commander cleared his throat.

"Anyway, the West still hasn't calmed down after the assassination of their banished Queen. There has been a rash of paranoid nobles secluding themselves on their country estates. It would have broken out even more with the king on his sickbed and the Queen dead if the heir did not seize control of the situation. Prince Sesshoumaru is as good as on the throne now. Both the South and East have their heart set on securing a strong alliance with the Western throne through marriage more than ever now. They will be sending out their princesses for a visit, the very minute the situation in the West calms."

The commander paused to look at her blank face.

"Just as I thought! You already knew all of that!" He accused.

Kagome smiled serenely.

"Perhaps."

"Hmpf. My sources have told me that Prince Sesshoumaru has also taken an obsessive interest in finding the assassin that murdered his mother. It was no secret that Sesshoumaru has been executing those who have returned without information. The entire kingdom is quivering in fear from the wrath of their future king. It was leaked out that the assassin had left behind a black handkerchief with the symbol of nightshade. Thus, the assassin has been christened "Nightshade". They have also reported that Sesshoumaru has not been seen anywhere without black handkerchief in his pocket."

"Hmm...this Prince Sesshoumaru seems like a piece of work."

The commander shrugged.

"All royalty is like that." He looked at Kagome curiously. "I have heard rumours of you heading into the East to visit some relatives."

"Indeed."

"Can you bring back some pepperseed oil for me?" The commander looked sheepish.

Kagome grinned.

"That won't be a problem. I'll send you enough pepperseed oil to last you for the next decade." she promised.

"Don't make promises you can't keep. Good pepperseed oil is so hard to come by."

"Hmm..." Kagome stood up. "Well, thank you for your time. I'll leave you to your work then."

The commander stood up.

"I have your usual room prepared already. I assume you remember the way." He said dryly.

"I remember well enough."

Kagome slipped the cowl over her head and curtseyed.

"Have a good night, uncle."

"Good night, my dear."

She slipped out of door. The commander shook his head at her antics. As silent as a shadow and as deadly as her father, she was a worthy replacement for him. Commander Kraken yawned and returned to his papers.

...

Kagome handed her papers over to the Eastern border guard. Clad in the bronze armor resembling dragon scales, Kagome could not see the face of the man inspecting her papers.

"Lord Kagome Higurashi, Ambassador of the Northern Lands." He read. "What is your business?"

"My uncle is out of pepperseed oil and has asked me to send a shipment back to him."

"We import pepperseed oil to the Northern Lands."

Kagome couldn't even see her interrogator's eyes through his helmet but she couldn't sense any hostility coming from him.

"Yes, but my uncle is very particular about his pepperseed oil. He insisted that I personally pick out the shipment myself. A distant cousin of mine is also getting married soon so I am here to find her a wedding present."

"I see." He shuffled through her papers once more and handed them back to her. "Welcome back to the Eastern Lands, Lord Kagome. Ask for Oscar in the Yamor District. He is selling an exceptional batch of pepperseed oil this season."

"Thank you. I will definitely go there."

Kagome bowed in the Eastern style reserved for men and the guard returned her bow. Kouga's choice of making her an ambassador was looked on with foreboding in a kingdom where only men held positions of power. In accordance with tradition, Kagome was given the title of "Lord" and the rights of a man in the Eastern Lands. In return for those rights, Kagome was considered a man and not exempt from a challenge to a duel if any was ever issued to her.

Kagome slipped back onto Dreamfire and passed through the border gates. Veering off one of the main roads leading towards the city, she took the Western road. An hour later, she arrived at her estates. This is one of the many estates she inherited from her father. Her father had estates in the Western, Northern and the Eastern Lands. The Crown had confiscated the lands in the West directly belonging to her father more than a decade ago. This hasn't stopped him from acquiring a new plot of land and title in the West years later.

Her estate in the East was spread across acres of green land. The manor itself was simple by Eastern standards but ostentatious by the North whom paid homage to comfort and nature over lavish displays of wealth. As Dreamfire clopped up the path to the manor, the servants began filing out to line up along the driveway.

Trained by years of countless discipline, all the servants bowed and chorused, "Welcome back, Lady Xian-Feng."

Kagome dismounted and motioned for her servants to rise. As smooth as if they were all one entity, they straightened into line of capable men and women.

"Thank you everyone. You may go back to your duties now."

Everyone bowed again and backed away to return to their tasks. A stable hand came forward and lead Dreamfire away to a comfortable stall and warm hay. An older, more distinguished man in robes glided forward with inborn grace.

"Welcome back, my lady. Did you have a good trip in the Northern Lands visiting your relatives?" He said with a smooth bow with his hands concealed within his sleeves.

"A wonderful one. Thank you for asking, Lok-Xian."

Kagome stripped off her gloves and walked to into the manor with Lok-Xian following a step behind her as decorum demanded.

"I want a detailed account of the estate and the happenings around court in my study in twenty minutes."

"Yes, my lady. A bath has been prepared for your arrival."

Kagome smiled.

"You're as efficient as always. It's good to be back."

"I live to serve, my lady."

He bowed again to her with his hands tucked in his long sleeves. Kagome nodded to him and went up the upstairs to change.

...

In precisely twenty minutes later, Kagome was showered and dressed in comfortable Eastern styled robes. She barely sat down in her cushioned bamboo chair when Lok-Xian rapped onto the door.

"Come in."

Lok-Xian entered carrying a small tray with tea things. Aware about her particular habits of making tea, he put the tray in front of Kagome and kept standing. Kagome opened the small canister of tea leaves and inhaled its rich earthy scent. She took the small spoon made especially for measuring tea leaves and scooped three heaping spoonfuls into a tea cup. Kagome washed the tea leaves with hot water and strained the water out with the cover of the tea cup. Then she filled the teacup up with fresh hot water from the teapot on the burner. Swirling the tea leaves around with the round edge of the cover, she counted to ten slowly. Angling the cover on a tilt again, she strained the prepared tea into a more elaborate cup for drinking. She slipped the silver needle out of the pouch in her robes and swirled the tea in a six corner star pattern with two complete rotations around the circumference of the cup. She had learned from bitter experience the price for negligence. She always tested from top to bottom and around the edges of everything before consuming. Lok-Xian had served her for years and was aware of her particular quirks. Due to the fact that Easternians were extremely superstitious, he believed that Kagome performed this ritual as a warding for health, luck and prosperity. Kagome wasn't about to enlighten him about the truth of her little ritual.

Lok-Xian continued to stand there silently as Kagome drank from the delicate tea up. It's clear, bitter cool taste coated her tongue. Just as she suspected from the tea leaves' scent, this batch was one of the best she had ever had.

"Superb quality, Lok-Xian."

The corner of his mouth slanted up slightly as he inclined his head in solemn acknowledgement.

Kagome savoured one more sip of her tea and put her tea cup down. Relaxing into her chair, she motioned for him to begin his report.

"During your absence, nothing happened much at the estate. Your crops have been flourishing and not only will we be able to feed the tenants and meet the Emperor's tax, we should have surplus."

Kagome nodded.

"Give the farmers a little extra and sell the rest off to the other kingdoms. How is the saffron coming along?"

"The seed is taking to the soil like a native plant. We should be able to sell them in the markets by late autumn as we planned."

Kagome had come upon the small purple flower during one of her expeditions to replenish her poisons. By pure chance, she had discovered the plant's exotic flavour by experimenting with heat and tasting. As the climate where she found the seeds where similar to the one in the Eastern lands, she cultivated its seeds and brought it back to her estate to give to Lok-Xian to grow. Seeing how the experiment has been a success so far, Kagome planned to release the spice to the markets in late autumn after harvesting the flowers in mid-autumn.

"Perfect. And the court?"

"Busy. You had received a summons to the court but I had made the proper excuses in your stead. The latest news that has the court in a frenzy is the assassination of the Queen of the Western Lands."

"There is nothing like a murder of royal to get the courts all worked up." Kagome said dryly.

"True but that's not all. Having the Queen dead and the King on his sickbed has almost completely cleared the way for the Western heir. And the first duty of a new king would be assure the succession. Every female within the four kingdoms are convinced that they would be the next Queen of the Western Lands." Lok-Xian coughed delicately. "Begging your pardon, my lady."

"No offense taken. Thank you for your report. It is as thorough as always."

"Thank you, my lady."

Kagome leaned forward in her chair to rest her clasped hands on her desk.

"I have another job for you."

...

Kagome took one of the long roads leading into the city. Her own estate was located approximately two hours away from the capital city. She usually moved to her rooms in palace whenever she was summoned to the court. Which set of rooms depended on which persona that she was summoned under. Dreamfire snorted uneasily with the increase of traffic as the roads merged into one main road into the city. Smoothing him with one hand, they continued into the city. Within the city, the amount of people increased exponentially. It would have been impossible to navigate with the crush of people if they did not give her a wide berth. In the East, only those with noble blood or foreigners rode horses. Kagome ignored the curious stares of people and continued on her destination.

The afternoon sun of the East beat down mercilessly with its heated flail. It never failed to amaze Kagome how there seemed to be different aspect of the sun in each region. She sometimes wondered whether the four cardinal kingdoms shared the same sun in the clear sky. The stench of the sweat and spices in the heat of the day wafted up to assault her nose. Kagome's nose twitched and nudged Dreamfire into the narrow berth between the people. She felt her long, black hair tied into an Eastern man's queue beat against her back to the rhythm of Dreamfire's paces. She reached up and wiped away the sweat that rolled down the side of her face. She was thankful that she in the city as Lord Kagome and not as Lady Xian-Feng. Eastern tradition also demanded that young unmarried women wear masks to cover their features. Legend had it that the concubine of the Eastern Emperor had been so jealous of the Queen's beauty that she ordered a manservant to throw boiling water into her face. The Queen's beauty had been marred and she was so devastated that she wore a mask for the rest of her life. She passed a decree that all unmarried women must not be seen in public without a mask. For the one who had marred her beauty, she was publicly scarred and then banished to distant lands. True or not, it was the law and any unmarried women seen outside of their estates without a mask was subject to execution.

Kagome continued down the street until she reached the Yamor District. The shops opened up and spilled onto the street. Merchants hawked their wares and their shrewd wives watched their potential customers browsing through their wares. Kagome shifted off to the side and hailed down a small boy running around the market.

"Yesh, my Lord?" Lisped the young urchin. "What can I do for you today?

"I'm looking for Oscar. Bring me to Oscar and I'll give you this."

Kagome pulled out a copper coin from her cloak and showed it to her young guide.

"Yesh, my lord! Follow me!"

The urchin took off at a speed that had Kagome raising her eyebrows. She nudged Dreamfire to follow the boy. Within minutes, the boy brought her in front of a store stall.

"Here you go, my lord."

Kagome flipped him three copper coins. He plucked them swiftly out of the air.

"Thank you, my lord! If you ever need a guide, just ask the boys for Yasef."

He bowed and promptly disappeared back into the bustling crowd. Kagome shook her head and dismounted. Keeping a handle on Dreamfire's bridle, she walked towards the couple watching her.

"I am looking for Oscar."

An asiatic man stepped forward and bowed.

"That would be me, my Lord."

"I am looking for pepperseed oil. I've been told that you have received an exceptional batch this season."

Oscar laughed.

"That is right. I assume you will want to sample the batch?"

"Indeed."

"Please come in. My son will keep an eye on your horse."

Kagome looked around to see a young boy by her side. She nodded at him and followed his father inside. It has nice and cool inside the store. There was a slight breeze wafting through the store from the open door in the back. Oscar gestured for Kagome to sit on a high backed stool in front of a table. Kagome settled herself into the chair and waited for Oscar to reemerge from the back of the store. A few minutes later, he came back out with a vial of bright orange liquid and a small dish with some baked flatbread. Oscar poured some pepperseed oil onto the dish and offered it to Kagome. She took a piece of the flatbread and dipped it into the oil. The spicy, distinct flavour of the pepperseed oil exploded in her mouth. Her eyes watered and she fought to keep her composure. She swallowed the flatbread and felt it burn all the way down. Kagome bit down on her tongue but the inferno in her mouth did not cease. She felt a cup pushed into her hand. She blindly lifted the cup to her mouth and took a gulp. Cool liquid tea coated her tongue and quenched the fire. She sighed and finished the rest of her drink.

"Thank you." she gasped out. "I've never had such strong pepperseed oil before."

Oscar looked smug and poured her another glass of chilled tea.

"This is because you never had such fine quality of pepperseed oil."

Kagome's mouth opened in a slight o.

"Made from the best batch of harvested pepperseed. This batch has been roasted, sundried and pressed for months in preparation. The oil is stored in cellars especially crafted for this purpose. The finer the quality, the stronger the explosion in your mouth." Oscar's eyes took a slightly dream look as he recited the finer points of his pepperseed oil.

Kagome cleared her throat.

"Yes, my Lord?"

"I would like to purchase your entire shipment of pepperseed oil."

Oscar gaped.

"All of it? There is at least a tonne of pepperseed oil."

"All of it." Kagome said firmly.

"Alright."

The man looked a little dazed from the sheer quantity of pepperseed oil Kagome was purchasing. He whipped out an abacus and started calculating the total of her purchase.

"It will be 3500 gold bullions."

"For pepperseed oil? I could buy all the pepperseed oil in this district for that price."

"But you won't find any to match the quality of mine." He said proudly with a self-assured tilt of his chin. "3450."

Kagome laughed.

"Do you think that I am an ignorant "_buitar" _? 2250."

_Buitar_ was a degoratory term that the natives named foreigners. Kagome had some Eastern blood running through her veins but living in the Western Lands where pale skin was prized had her skin paler than her usual golden yellow.

Oscar gaped at her.

"2500? If I sell my shipment to you for that price, my children and wife would starve. My best price is 3250."

Kagome scoffed.

"You might as well come over here and take my money by force. I'll take it for 2550"

"3000."

"2600." Kagome countered.

"2900." Oscar insisted firmly.

"2800."

"2750."

"AH HAH! I'll take it!"

"What?" Oscar looked at her in horror as he realized what had happened. "Noo," he moaned.

"A deal is a deal!" Kagome said triumphantly.

Oscar moaned even louder and smacked himself on the forehead. He muttered to himself in a rural dialect and walked around the store in an agitated manner. He said something and looked at Kagome.

"What?"

"How are you planning to pay for it?"

"Put it on the tab of Lord Kagome and send the bill to the palace."

"Alright."

He dug around in his desk and pulled out some writing supplies. Oscar ground out some ink and dipped his brush into the inky darkness. He scribbled something down on parchment and threw some sand on top of it. Brushing the sand off, he handed it to Kagome. Kagome skimmed the receipt and folded it in half. Tucking the receipt into her robe, she nodded to Oscar. He gave her a crisp bow and she showed herself out.

The sun was still shining brightly in the sky. She pulled out a copper and gave it to Oscar's son who was holding onto Dreamfire's bridle. Her business done, she mounted in one smooth motion and nudged Dreamfire into the afternoon traffic.

...

"Did business going accordingly, my lady?" Lok-Xian asked when Kagome entered the house.

"Yes. I will be leaving in two day's time. A distant relation in the Southern Lands is getting married. Please ready my travel preparations."

"Very well, my lady."

"A shipment of pepperseed oil should be arriving sometime next month. When it does, put it in storage in the cellars until my return."

Kagome took a step on the stairwell and twisted back around.

"Also, dig out that old carpet from storage. I plan to give it to my distant cousin as a wedding present."

"Yes, my lady."

...


	15. Chapter 15

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 15**_

Lord Miroku, ambassador of the Western Lands, ran a hand through his slightly sweaty locks. He grimaced and made a mental note to stop by the baths later. A drop of cold sweat ran down his back as he watched the Prince of the Western Lands who in turn watched his retainer with the intensity of a predator eyeing it's prey.

"What did you find regarding this symbol, Jaken."

"Nothing but I have several more texts to consult."

"Silence."

The small toad shut his mouth and cowered on the floor. Sesshoumaru turned his icy golden gaze on Miroku.

"Speak."

Miroku accepted the infamous black handkerchief and stared at the crimson crest of twin sais and nightshade. Everyone in the Western Court was under extremely high tension after he had personally declared that he was handling the investigation himself. More than a quarter of the court had fled to their country estates. The remaining three quarters with unmarried females ranging from the youngest at 11 to 50 in human years were working themselves into a frenzy from the stoic lord's sudden increase of appearances in court. It was soon obvious that he was completely preoccupied with finding his mother's killer. Several more bold hopeful ladies had personally approached Sesshoumaru with their own wild speculations. The last one had been banished from the kingdom. Miroku knew firsthand that this was annoying Lord Sesshoumaru to no end and it was a miracle that he hadn't killed some giggling female already

"It is a crest of twin sais and nightshade." Miroku said slowly.

"No really, you stupid human-"

Lord Sesshoumaru knocked the toad unconscious. Miroku schooled his face into a blank mask as he stared at the prone figure sprawled on the carpet.

"Continue."

"Sais exist in every culture but they are not used as weapons anymore."

Lord Sesshoumaru's face remained impassive. Encouraged by his lack of reaction, Miroku continued voicing his musings.

"Nightshade could also be easily found in any of the four cardinal kingdoms. The crest itself does not offer any clues." Miroku paused. "Has there been any records of assassins leaving behind mementoes o claim the kill, my lord?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes never wavered from Miroku's face.

"That area has been investigated already. There has been no record of assassins leaving behind except for the Dark Assassins."

"The Dark Assassins are just a myth."

"That's what the ignorant were lead to believe. I personally remember a time where the Dark Assassins existed."

Miroku's eyes grew wide.

"Then we could track down where the Dark Assassins originated from and find out which kingdom the assassin is from."

"The Dark Assassins belonged to none of the kingdoms. They claimed a part of land and declared it a separate entity. It was considered the fifth kingdom. With the fall of the top ranking masters of the Guild, the Dark Assassins ceased to exist."

"An organization that big could not have been completely wiped-"

"It wasn't. The land and the assassins themselves have been absorbed."

"By whom, my lord?"

Sesshoumaru looked at him levelly.

"The Western Lands."

Miroku startled.

"Our assassin is from this kingdom?" he burst out.

"Highly unlikely. I have them all carefully monitored and aware of what happens to the enemies of the Western Lands."

Sesshoumaru cracked his knuckles and Miroku shivered. A knock broke the tense moment.

"Enter." Lord Sesshoumaru commanded.

A messenger entered and bowed.

"Forgive my interruption, Your Highness.. A package has arrived for Lord Miroku from the Eastern Lands."

"It can wait." Miroku said dismissively.

The messenger paused. "It was said to be of great importance."

"It can-"

"Maybe you should see what it is. I'm interested to see what is so important that they would interrupt a meeting between a vassal and his liege."

The messenger trembled and sidestepped until the door was between him and his lord. Sesshoumaru inwardly smirked. As if a door could save the messenger if he deemed his life unworthy.

"Bring the package in here."

The messenger bobbed his head and took himself out of the room fast as his legs would carry him. Minutes later, the messenger returned with two servants carried in a wrapped up roll. Miroku's mouth dropped open and started forward.

"It can't be," he breathed.

"What could be so important about a carpet?" Sesshoumaru mused.

The messenger bowed.

"The deliverer said to handle with utmost care as it is a priceless carpet that Lord Miroku has been seeking for over a decade."

"Can this really be it after so many years of searching?" Miroku muttered to himself.

Miroku circled around the rolled up carpet. The servants moved forward to take off the protective covering around the carpet. Miroku waved them off.

"This is too precious. If there is what I think it is then you clumsy oafs might ruin it."

The servants backed off to discreetly to the side. Miroku carefully released the ties securing the leather tarp. He gasped out loud when the roll was unveiled. Miroku fell to his knees and touched the roll reverently. Lord Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at this excessive display of emotion over a carpet.

"It's an early century Andieven weave." He whispered. "Who could have sent me such a precious gift?"

Sesshoumaru eyed the horrible faint yellow and bright blue weave showing through the back of the carpet.

"It's hideous."

Miroku crooned to the carpet. Smoothing his hand around the roll to make sure nothing was hooked onto the carpet, he gently pushed. The roll did not move at all. Frowning, he pushed up his sleeves and pushed with all his might. The roll wobbled a bit. Miroku panted from his exertion and looked at the roll with a perplexed expression on his face. Sesshoumaru smirked at the show of pathetic human strength.

"Humans."

Sesshoumaru moved past him and extended a leg to kick the roll.

"NOO!"

Miroku threw himself on top of the roll of carpet. "This is a priceless antique! Please exercise caution!"

"It's a carpet."

Miroku blanched and shook his head vehemently.

"It's an early cent-"

Sesshoumaru ignored him and pulled back his leg. Miroku dove out of the way. Slowing down, Sesshoumaru gave the carpet a nudge with his booted foot. It unrolled slightly. Raising an eyebrow, he gave the carpet roll a much harder kick. The carpet unrolled at rapid speed and a body rolled out of it.

...

The body lay unmoving for a short while and stirred.

"Oww..."

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. It was a distinctively feminine noise of complaint.

"Did you really have to kick the carpet?" The mysterious female muttered as she rubbed her backside. "That really hurt!"

Sesshoumaru stared down his nose at the female sprawled in front of him. Affronted brown eyes stared at him expectantly. She couldn't possibly expect him, Lord Sesshoumaru, Heir to the throne of the Western Lands stoop to help her off the floor. Apparently she did. Miroku the forever ladies' man ran forward to help the masked woman up. He could see clearly from his vantage point that she accepted his help gratefully. The womanizer murmured something that made her smile slightly. More than slightly annoyed, Sesshoumaru cleared his throat.

At first glance, Sesshoumaru discerned that she was from the Eastern lands. She was wearing the light flowery robes favoured by the Eastern court. Her black hair was styled hair with the elaborate bun, loops and braids of a noble lady. More telling was the manner she carried herself and the jewels encrusted in her mask. As the heir of Western kingdom, he was required to learn all of the traditions and cultures of the other kingdoms. He knew of the Eastern kingdom's law of making all of the unmarried ladies wear masks. Eastern men guarded their women jealously which led to the question of what an unmarried lady like her was doing in his court through the unconventional way of arriving rolled up in a priceless carpet. The aforementioned carpet was currently ignored due to Miroku paying attention to its mistress.

He was almost certain that her dramatic entrance was another ploy to gain his attention. Sesshoumaru would have had to be blind and deaf to not realize that there a there hunt going on for him. The one of the worst kind. One to trap him in a lifetime of giggles and feminine wiles. He amended that thought. His parents were a living example that a mated couple could separate lives.

Due to his conclusion, he was not sure whether he or Miroku was more surprised when the mysterious female threw her arms around Miroku's neck and kissed him soundly on the lips. Sesshoumaru could see that Miroku was so shocked that he hadn't even had time to return the kiss before she pulled away.

"Umm...this is going to be awkward," Miroku stammered. "But have we met before?"

There was silence in his hall. Sesshoumaru had never seen Miroku so uncomfortable in his life. From the frightful silence, Sesshoumaru would have predicted an onslaught of hysterical tears. Instead, the woman smiled and hit Miroku on the arm.

"You don't have to be so modest, Miroku! Don't you remember me? I'm your fiancee!"

Sesshoumaru smirked. Mirok's womanizing ways have finally caught up to him. He was up to his neck in hot water this time.

"No, I don't."

Her dazzling smile wavered.

"I'm Lady Xian-Feng! We met when you were in the Eastern courts. You had sought me out and," she blushed. "You asked me to carry your child right after dinner. I slapped you so hard that you fell over and then you apologized for being a blundering fool and proposed."

Miroku looked confused.

"I refused and you kept proposing to be again and again for the whole week that you were there! I said yes to you after your 15th proposal."

The woman stared dreamily at Miroku. His ambassador just look sick.

"I'm starting to have recollection of our encounter," he said slowly. "It would be easier for me to remember if I could see your face."

Lady Xian-Feng laughed softly.

"Nice try, Miroku. You know our laws. Unmarried women cannot be seen in public without their masks and I know you, my silver-tongued charmer, too well. Allowing you one freedom will lead to another and another." She shook her finger at him. "Not until we are married."

Sesshoumaru watched in gentle amusement as his ambassador turned chalk pale.

"I don't know how to put this delicately," Miroku paused and took a deep breath. "But I must say that I already have a fiancee."

"That can't be," Lady Xian-Feng said calmly. "Because you are engaged to me!"

She beamed. Although Sesshoumaru couldn't see the rest of her face, he had the oddest feeling that she found all of this extremely amusing. Miroku sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"I don't remember anything of this." He muttered.

Lady Xian-Feng's face fell.

"I didn't think it would come to this." She sighed. "Thank God I brought them along with me."

She reached inside her voluminous sleeves and pulled out a bundle of letters. Miroku's eyes bulged out.

"What?"

"If you don't believe me then read it yourself!"

She yanked the first letter off the top of the pile and handed it to Miroku. He tore the letter out of the envelope and skimmed the contents. His face turned even paler as he read the letter.

"This is my writing." He whispered.

"Of course!" she exasperatedly. "Did you think I forged them?"

Miroku folded the letter but into its well-worn creases and put it back in the envelope. Looking solemn, he handed it back to Lady Xian-Feng who carefully replaced it with the others.

"I have a fiancee here. Her name is Lady Sango Torashi. I apologize if there has been any misunderstanding between us but there is no way I will be marrying you."

The woman turned pale and swayed. Her knees buckled and she fell to the ground into a graceless heap.

"But..but...I have nowhere else to go," she said brokenly. "All of my family is dead and I sold off the estate to pay for my trip here."

Sesshoumaru flinched slightly as the scent of tears assaulted his senses. He schooled his expression to one of impartiality and watched Miroku become more flustered.

"Please don't cry." Miroku said desperately and fell to his knees before her. "I'm sure we can work something out. In fact, I'll..pay for this carpet!" Miroku said with a burst of inspiration.

"This carpet is my family's most precious heirloom. It was supposed to be my dowry to you! But..now..."

She cried even louder. Miroku looked strickened and at loss with what to do with his acclaimed fiancee. Taking pity on the poor man, Sesshoumaru cleared his throat.

"Stop crying."

The woman stopped sobbing and sniffled.

"Cease with all that caterwauling." He commanded. "I will personally send my finance to buy back your estate and return you to where you belong."

"I can't go back!" She cried. "I was ruined the minute I left my estate without a chaperone!"

"Be quiet, woman!"

Lady Xian-Feng fell silent.

"You may stay here in the palace until the matter of your estate is resolved."

Pushing herself proudly to her feet, she dipped a curtsey. Sesshoumaru waved at a footman and a maid appeared a few minutes later to take her away. She nodded stiffly to Miroku and held her head up high as she walked out of the room.

...

The minute that the maid left her alone in the room that she was to stay in, Kagome collapsed onto the bed. That had to be one of the most tiring performances that she had ever given in her life. From the descriptions of Lord Miroku that she had heard from Tia, she had expected a less intelligent man. Instead of a man that she expected to be easily lead around by his libido, she had found a shrewd man that refused to give in. She should have guessed that a womanizer like him was required to be shifty to be able to skirt the marriage noose every time he dandled with the ladies. It would be harder to manipulate him than she had foreseen but Miroku was not a problem. He was just a diversion or a disguise for her true intent.

Kagome was certain that her story would pass the test because it had a grain of truth. She had heard the story of the fifteen proposals from the gossip grapevine in the Eastern court. The lady in question had been pursued relentlessly by Miroku and had given herself to him in the end. The difference between Kagome's story and reality was that the woman was still swooning after him and sending him countless letters of her devotion. To her knowledge, Miroku had not replied any of them. Still, she knew from Tia and Lyn that he_ did _send out countless love letters. She had forged those letters and replicated his style of writing. It was another one of the skills that she had mastered years ago.

Even though Kagome was certain that her story had no holes, she still couldn't stop her heart from beating faster when Lord Sesshoumaru had turned his cold gaze upon her. A month later and she could still remember their encounter in the hallway with painstaking detail. For a moment, she had thought that he had recognized despite all the precautions she took in preparation. When he finally looked away, she had not seen a flash of recognition in his eyes but suspicion. Suspicion was something that Kagome was used to dealing with. Used to living among demons, Kagome was aware that scent was the thing that gave most assassins away. Her father had left behind a special recipe for a bathing liquid that removed all of the original scents. Kagome used strong perfumes that would cover her own special scent during the times that she would not be able to bathe everyday. The last time she encountered Lord Sesshoumaru under the guise of Lady Evelyn, she had been wearing a floral perfume of wisterias. For this mission, she had picked the distinct perfume of the oriental lily native to the Eastern lands. Like she had mentioned before, her alibi should be intact. Also due to the less than slightly hostile relations between the East and the West, Kagome estimated that she had at least three months time before Lord Sesshoumaru's sources would be able to uncover Lady Xian-Feng's history. Three months to carry out her plan and return to the Northern Lands where she could leave this all behind. _Three months..._

…_._


	16. Chapter 16

_****Hello again my dear readers,**_

_**I apologize for the late release of this chapter. I have mild writer's block with the logical series of events happening within the story. I have been under extreme pressure and I must say that I am not happy with the quality of this chapter. For this reason, I will now be updating once a week on Tuesdays instead of twice a week like I was doing previously. In return, the chapters will be longer and hopefully I will be able to maintain a higher quality of writing like the previous chapters. Thank you for your understanding.**_

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 16**_

"Do you remember her?"

"NO!"

Miroku paced around the room agitatedly while his best friend, Inuyasha, lounged on a chair.

"Are you going to tell Sango?"

"HELL NO!"

Miroku jumped in front of Inuyasha and shoved his finger in his face.

"DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT TELLING HER."

Inuyasha yawned.

"Don't have to. The servants probably have it circulating around the palace already about you receiving a carpet with a woman within it." He smirked. "Knowing the gossips, they would say that the woman was _naked."_

"I'm going to kill you." Miroku screamed and jumped at Inuyasha.

His momentum knocked both of them clean out of the chair and onto the floor. Miroku pinned Inuyasha to the floor. Using his superior strength, Inuyasha shoved Miroku off him and stood up. Still on the floor, Miroku reached out and latched both hands onto Inuyasha's right ankle.

"Don't even think about it," Inuyasha warned and attempted to shake off Miroku's grip on his ankle.

Ignoring him, Miroku pulled with all his might. Inuyasha belatedly tried to grab onto something. Too slow, Inuyasha hit the carpeted floor face first. Seething, he pushed himself up but Miroku already jumped onto his back.

"HEY! OW! Not the ears!"

Inuyasha tried to buck him off but Miroku hung on grimly.

"LET GO OF MY EARS!"

"NOT UNTIL YOU PROMISE NOT TO TELL HER!"

"SHE DESERVES TO HEAR IT FROM YOU!

The men wrestled around on the floor. Miroku slugged Inuyasha in the jaw.

"That's rich. You giving me love advice."

"I wouldn't have to if you grew some balls."

Miroku punched Inuyasha and toppled him over. He climbed on top of Inuyasha and started strangling him.

".Me." Inuyasha bit out.

"Not until I strangle you."

"I don't want to explain to Sango why I killed you."

"YOU WON'T BE TELLING HER ANYTHING." Miroku snarled.

"Tell me what?" A feminine voice cut through the room. "What are you two doing?"

Inuyasha and Miroku froze. Only then did they realize that Miroku was straddling Inuyasha's waist. In their tussle, several of Inuyasha's buttons had popped off and his shirt gaped open. It looked like they were... Inuyasha shoved Miroku off him and he scooted backwards until half the length of the room was between them.

"Why, Inuyasha. I didn't realize that you liked me that way." Sniped Miroku.

"Shut up, you dirty lech. You jumped on me!" Inuyasha accused.

"I didn't grab your-"

"Enough!" Their audience of one said exasperatedly. "Can't you two grow up?"

"He started it!" they chorused.

They glared at each other and pointedly turned away.

"Miroku."

Miroku scooted over on his knees to kneel in front of Sango. He grabbed her hand and clasped it to his bosom.

"Yes, my dear Sango?" He said with stars in his eyes.

"What is this that you have to tell me?"

"Nothing, my dear heart. Everything is fine." He lied.

"You're lying and you know that I hate it when you lie."

Miroku visibly deflated under Sango's accusing glare. Inuyasha sitting on the floor half way across the room smirked and mimicked drawing a blade across his throat.

"So…who is this Lady Xian-Feng that the servants are gossiping about?"

Miroku blanched.

"She's no one worth your time, my dear heart."

"Then why did she arrive wrapped up in a carpet for you..._naked?"_ She said scathingly.

Inuyasha snorted and mouthed _I told you so_. Miroku looked scathingly at Inuyasha.

"Go change your shirt, pretty boy. I need to talk to Sango."

Inuyasha crossed his arms over his chest.

"I don't think so. This is getting interesting."

Miroku opened his mouth to argue. Sango grabbed his chin to face her.

"Leave Inuyasha alone. This is between you and me. Anything you say can be said in front of Inuyasha."

Sango let go of his chin and seated herself on the chair that Inuyasha had vacated. Miroku followed obediently and took a seat across from her.

"Talk."

"Yes, Sango." Miroku replied meekly.

"You have five minutes to convince me or I am breaking off our engagement."

Miroku blanched and started talking as fast as he could.

"I had no idea that she was coming. I just received a carpet this morning and she was wrapped up inside. FULLY CLOTHED." He shot a glare at the laughing Inuyasha and continued without pausing. "She's a lady from the Eastern Court and claims that she is engaged to me! The thing is that I don't remember her at all!"

"Don't forget the letters!" Inuyasha piped up from his spot in the room.

"What letters is he talking about?" Sango said suspiciously.

Miroku shot him a dirty look that promised retribution.

"Lady Xian-Feng brought along a bundle of letters as proof of our engagement."

"When exactly did she say you proposed to her?"

"She didn't say but...the letters date back to over a year."

Miroku held Sango's gaze steadily.

"And she accepted." She stated matter-of-factly.

"Yes."

"Is there any way that the letters have been forged?"

Miroku's shoulders drooped.

"It's my writing." he admitted.

"But you don't remember her or writing those letters."

"No, I don't but I have sent out countless love letters." Miroku mused.

At Sango's glare, he quickly amended, "All sent out months before I seriously proposed to you!"

He had been proposing to Sango for years jokingly now but his proposals had only turned serious for the last couple months. Sango had finally acknowledged his sincerity and grudgingly accepted his proposal two weeks ago.

"I doubt that anyone can forge Miroku's chicken scrawl!" Inuyasha added in.

"You know what this means." Sango said quietly.

"Please, Sango. Don't do it." Miroku begged. "I don't even remember her!"

Sango sighed.

"I don't know, Miroku. If you really did promise to marry her then you need to keep your word as a gentleman."

"But..but.."

"If she isn't lying then your engagement to her was there before you proposed to me."

Miroku drooped.

"Yes. That would mean that."

"Ask for the letters and see if anything jogs your memory." Sango murmured to Miroku.

"Get the asshole to look at the letters for you." Inuyasha said quietly. "He might find something there that you may have missed."

"That is a great idea, Inuyasha."

Miroku hesitated.

"Does that mean that we are still engaged?" Miroku asked quietly.

Sango smiled softly.

"Yes."

Miroku gave out a loud whoop and grabbed Sango for a passionate kiss. Her arms flailed as the chair tipped back for the second time of the day. Miroku cushioned their fall and kept kissing her. A button flew through the air to hit Miroku on the side of his head. He gave a grunt of pain but did not break his kiss with Sango.

"Eww guys. Cut it out and save that for when you're in your own room."

They broke the kiss and Miroku touched his forehead to Sango's.

"Just for you, Inuyasha. I think everything will be alright now."

Sango just smiled back up at him.

...

Kagome was thankful that everything had gone according to her plan. A maid had set up her bath and left a bathrobe and towels beside the tub. Kagome had brought along a small portion of her special solution on her person to wash away her personal scent just in case her trunks didn't come and didn't have time to make more. Then she spent a good portion of the hour experimenting with the many different soaps that the maid had left behind for her to experiment with. The perfume and soap essence of oriental lilies that she had chosen for this mission was still in her trunks. Until then, she decided that she would smell like…lavender.

When she was finally done, she had found that the invisible maid had already hung up her many robes and left one out for her to wear in the bedroom. It appeared that the trunks that she had sent along with the carpet had made it to the rooms that she had given. Her jewelry and cosmetics had also been taken out and set up on the vanity table. Kagome had heard of the Western practice of having servants sent from the host to unpack everything so she had stowed her weapons in the false bottom of the trunk as a precaution. Her line of work made her extremely paranoid with what she allowed the servants to see. She was uncomfortably conscious about how much the servants talked and even more so with how fast gossip traveled. Kagome herself had used their gossip grapevine as her information base more than once in the past.

She was confident that the maid hadn't found her poisons. Kagome checked her jewelry box out of habit. Just as she thought, her poisons were undisturbed in her jewelry box. Kagome also checked to make sure that her weapons had survived the trip. The false bottom had not been discovered. Kagome would have had to silence everyone who had unpacked for her if the false bottom had been moved. She picked a small dagger to slip into her boot and a stiletto to put under her pillow. Thankfully, it looked like there would not be any innocent blood shed today. Shaking off her macabre thoughts, she looked around the room in amazement. Fresh flowers and polished windows were signs of the remarkable efficiency of this invisible maid. She made a mental reminder to thank and introduce herself to this remarkable woman.

Kagome had just closed the bedroom door to change when a soft knock sounded on her door.

"Who is it?" She called out.

"Your maid, Your Resplendent Excellency. I'm here to help you dress."

Kagome hesitated. She was used to dressing herself but she knew that as Lady Xian-Feng, it would be extremely odd if one of her station denied the help of her maid. Due to her previous role as the banished Queen's lady in waiting, they were required to do everything themselves with only the occasional maid to clean. Only the Queen herself was awarded the privileges of her rank. Her lady-in-waitings were the ones who atoned for her adulterous behavior with the lack of servants and the clothing restriction. For this reason, nobles only sent their youngest daughters or spinsters to the Queen. The lady-in-waitings all helped each other dress but Kagome always managed on her own. She didn't want to get too close with people that she would be ultimately using as an alibi in the future. For this reason, she always hired a new maid to accompany her whenever she was summoned to the Eastern court as Lady Xian-Feng. Letting her logic overrule her paranoia, Kagome went to her bedstand and donned a simple mask. She palmed a small dagger that she had taken from her trunk and opened the door slightly. When she saw a small woman dressed in a maid's uniform, she opened her door the rest of the way.

The maid curtseyed deeply.

"Greetings, Your Resplendent Excellency My name is Lisette and I have been assigned to attend to your comfort."

"Are you the one who unpacked for me?"

"Your Resplendent Excellency."

"Thank you. Your efficiency is appreciated." The maid blushed. "Now, how much do you about Eastern fashion?"

"My previous mistress had a fascination with the East and often journeyed to their court. She insisted on being dressed in the height of Eastern fashion."

"I see..."

A chime sounded in her room. Kagome was slightly confused but Lisette seemed to know what she was doing. She excused herself to answer the door. Kagome watched her converse with someone else on the other side of the door. After a few seconds, she nodded and closed the door. Lisette walked back into the bedroom and curtseyed. Kagome sighed inwardly. Western mannerisms did not usually demand such inflections of respect but the East did. Lisette's previous mistress probably insisted that she made the proper bows towards decorum.

"The messenger said that the Lord Sesshoumaru expects you in his study in an hour's time."

Kagome frowned.

"That's terribly improper," she murmured.

"I beg your pardon, Your Resplendent Excellency, but we are considered much more forward compared to the Eastern kingdom and-"

"What His Highness wants, he gets." Kagome remarked dryly.

"Precisely." Lisette murmured and bobbled.

"Also, Lisette. I will be here for at last a few weeks, there is no need to pay heed to the Eastern traditions. Address me as you would to any other lady here."

Lisette hesitated.

"Yes?"

"Pardon my forwardness, _my lady_." Lisette said carefully. "But you aren't like my previous mistress or any of the other Eastern ladies that I have observed."

Kagome smiled.

"If you had a chance to live in a true Eastern household, you would realize that most ladies do not follow society's dictates within their own manor. For example, how many ladies do you know that would roll themselves in a carpet and deliver themselves to their fiancées?"

Lisette blushed.

"Yes, it is true." Kagome grinned. "I used a slightly less conventional way of surprising my fiance."

Her smile faded. "Who would have known that he was already engaged." Kagome whispered and let a tear fall.

Oh my lady!" Lisette hurried around the room and found her a handkerchief. "You must not cry! It will ruin your complexion!"

Kagome sniffed delicately.

"Thank you for being so understanding, Lisette. I'm don't usually cry. It's just that I'm in a foreign land and all alone. My actions have ruined me and there is no way that I will be able to go back to my country without the safety of marriage. I don't what to do if Miroku doesn't live up to his promise and marry me!"

She covered her face with her hands.

"My lady. May I have the permission to speak?"

Kagome's head snapped up.

"Don't ever ask for permission to speak, Lisette! I left behind all my friends when I came here. You are my only confident!"

Kagome peeked up through her bangs. She was worried that she may have been overly dramatic but her maid was soaking up her tragic tale like a sponge.

"Have you ever thought about finding another man to marry if Lord Miroku does not marry you?"

"No. I love him." Kagome said dramatically.

"I see but Lord Miroku is very much in love with Lady Sango..."

Kagome grabbed Lisette's hands.

"You know Lord Miroku?"

"Not personally but I know his valet."

"Then you must go talk to him and ask him everyone he knows about Lord Miroku!"

Lisette blushed.

"Alright, my lady..."

"Thank you so much, Lisette! I feel much better now!" Kagome glanced at the timeglass sitting on the table. "Oh my! Look at the time! Please help me dress and do up my hair!"

"Yes, my lady. Will you be putting away your mask?"

"No. As long as I am away from my country and unmarried, I will wear my mask." Kagome looked at herself in the mirror. I have that much dignity left over to not let men stare upon my face while I am still unmarried."

"Understood, my lady. How would you like your hair done?"

"Just something simple, please. We wouldn't keep His Highness waiting, would we?"

...


	17. Chapter 17

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 17**_

By the time that Lisette was done putting up Kagome's hair into a simple high bun, Kagome was worrying about how to get to Lord Sesshoumaru's study. Due to previous assassination, she was familiar with the layout of the castle. The problem was that her current persona as Lady Xian-Feng would have no idea where to go. Perplexed, she sent Lisette off to summon a page. When Lisette opened the outer door to her suite, a young boy tumbled into the room. Redfaced with shame at being caught daydreaming at his post, he scrambled to his feet and bowed.

"I am to take you to Lord Sesshoumaru, my lady." The boy said formally with his red blush still staining his young cheeks.

Kagome hid her smile behind a delicate cough. Smiling would destroy the poor boy's already wounded pride. She still remembered an age when her ego was larger than her head.

"That would be fine."

Kagome clasped her hands behind her and glided towards to the door. She could see the page gawking at her from the corner of her eye.

"My lady!"

Kagome paused in the doorway at Lisette's call.

"Hmm?"

"Your fan."

Lisette hurried forward with a pretty folded _tsunen_ in her hand. Kagome stared at it thoughtfully and accepted the fan. She looked back at Lisette and smiled.

"Thank you, Lisette. How forgetful of me."

Lisette smiled back and retreated back into the bedroom to clean up. Kagome tucked the _tsunen_ into the compartment in her sleeve. She gestured for the patiently waiting page to continue on.

"Let us be on our way."

The boy nodded solemnly and led the way down the familiar corridors. Kagome silently reminded herself to clasp her hands behind her back, straighten her spine and tilt her chin slightly upward. This was how noble ladies were expected comport themselves within the Court. They had to clasp their hands behind their backs to show the proper respect and deference to the men who walked with their arms by their sides. The slight tilt of the chin showed a strong side of pride and dignity of a lady belonging to a good family. Not too much tilt on the chin or that would be considered arrogant.

Her slippers sank slightly into the plush carpets beneath her feet. The weather had cooled off since the previous month that she had been in the Western kingdom. A gentle breeze made its way throughout the palace. It brought in the fresh scent of the gardens hidden in the private courtyards of the royal suites. Kagome wondered idly if the wisterias had faded by now. On the way to Lord Sesshoumaru's study, Kagome saw very few servants bustling around in the corridors. She wondered whether her guide had been ordered to choose a less popular route to avoid her being seen by others. As she knew very well, the walls had eyes. Servants did not need to appear to be looking to note the happenings within the castle. Despite her guide's cautiousness, everyone in the castle would know about her private interview with Lord Sesshoumaru before dinnertime.

Down another long corridor, two rights and a left, they arrived at his study. Kagome mentally noted the landmarks and directions on the way there. This way, she would be able to make it back to his study even in the dark. She foresaw a not so distant future where she would find the necessity to search his private domain. It definitely wouldn't hurt to bring back from secret information from within the Western. The lines between assassin and spy blurred within Kagome whenever it came to her country. She was not one to leave an opportunity hanging without taking it.

Finally, they stopped before a massive wooden door. The door was a rich cherry brown with the crest of the Inutashio family carved into the wood. The infamous crest of a full moon rising behind snarling white dog demon among a bed of sakura blossoms marked the door for what it was; the private domain of the Inutashio family. Sakura blossoms, the symbol of mortality and fleeting life, carpeted the ground beneath the feet of a dog demon. How barbaric and telling. His ancestors might as well have created a crest soaked with the blood of innocents spilled to create and maintain this kingdom. Hiding her disgust behind her mask of indifference, she waited while the page knocked loudly on the door. A door opened seemingly of its own accord.

"State name and business." A voice had authoritatively.

Looking down, Kagome realized that a small toad demon had opened the door and was waiting for her to answer. Kagome was surprised that such a low servant would dare to address a noble lady so blatantly. She waited for the page to announce her arrival but it looked like she was on her own. Kagome mentally berated herself for clumsiness and for being caught off guard even before she entered the room. How could she not have seen the toad demon in the first place? It has only been one month back in the Northern lands and she was already slipping. Kagome was losing her edge. She might as well go up to Lord Sesshoumaru and tell him straight to his face that she came here to assassin his father. Kagome could imagine how well her audience would receive certain confession. The most likely reaction would be her head stuck on a pike and displayed on the outer wall as an example to those who considered challenging the Western throne. Kagome liked having her head attached the rest of her body very much. She dug her nails into her palms and chastised herself for not being more alert. Kagome looked down her nose at the toad.

"I am Lady Xian-Feng. I should be expected."

The little toad grumbled and barked, "State your business."

Something flew through the air and hit the toad solidly in the side of the head. The toad slid bonelessly into an unconscious heap. Kagome couldn't help but search the carpet for what had struck the toad down. It was a tasteless, pornographic figurine of a man and a woman writhing in ecstasy. Lord Sesshoumaru had obviously thrown it to shock her. How childish.

"Enter."

Kagome stepped daintily over the unconscious toad. The train of her robe slid over the unconscious toad. Kagome forced down the glimmer of disgust and made a mental reminder for Lisette to wash this particular outfit when she returned to her rooms. No, it would be a better idea to burn it. Who knew when was the last time that the toad had bathed? Kagome mentally sighed. It was such a nice outfit.

"Please have a seat."

As Kagome looked around for a place to sit, she saw another servant materialize and drag the toad out the door. The door closed with a snick and then they were alone. Kagome took a seat in one of the plush overstuffed arms off to the side. This was obviously meant to be an interrogation but there was no way that she will be sitting in one of those straight back chairs design to instill fear and discomfort. She used the very same ploy back in the Northern lands while interrogating spies and suspects. The low chairs were designed to put the interrogator at a higher height advantage to make them seem more menacing and aggressive. The chairs could become a useful prop in her act to play the conned innocent but they were also designed for maximum discomfort. Kagome was a masochist but not enough to sit in one of those chairs for anything longer than five minutes. Setting her robes around her, she clasped her hands primly in her lap and stared up at her cold-eyed interrogator. She was ready.

...

Sesshoumaru didn't know what to think. Everything about her screamed gently bred lady of the East but there was something about her that was not quite right. He had watched her closely ever since her entrance into his study. She had seemed surprised to be addressed by Jaken but she did not bat an eyelash when he had thrown that disgusting statue at Jaken. She had neither looked startled or shocked at his violence towards his retainer. Even one of the ladies from his own court would have flinched, screamed or used the opportunity to employ dramatics such as fainting. Then he would have been honour bound to dump cold water on her to revive the fainting blossom. Sesshoumaru always enjoyed that particular part very much and was quite disappointed that he wouldn't be offering that service today. She hadn't even twitched at disgust when he saw her eyes find the grossly inappropriate statue. He was now quite curious as to what such sheltered Eastern ladies were exposed to not have any reaction to both of his absolutely outrageous actions. She appeared quite calm and he didn't even see a hint of a flush on her lightly tanned skin.

In fact, she seemed to bear no resemblance to the hysterical female from earlier on. This woman held herself with the highest dignity and pride. Even when she had stepped over the unconscious Jaken, she never lost her composure. Her long trailing robes and sleeves waved gently behind her. The way that her sleeves flowed with the rest of her movements spoke of a innate grace and discipline. Sesshoumaru was aware of how noble born ladies were expected to be able to control the movement of their trailing sleeves to mimic the gentle sway of the ocean waves. His eyes couldn't seem to stop watching her. Dressed in a simple outfit layered in pale shades of yellow and green, she was the embodiment of summer. His sharp eyes picked out the intricately embroidered gold thread flowers bordering her over robe. It was done in such craftsmanship that he was tempted to ask for the name of her embroiderer to commission a robe for himself. Her clothes gave more away of her personality than her face ever would. Her simple mask of yellow and green matched her attire and covered more than three quarters of her face. Only sensuous red lips and warm brown eyes could be seen. Aware of the Eastern law, he knew better to than the fool, Miroku, to cajole her into taking off her mask. Despite her ruinous arrival into his Court, he had no idea how highly ranked her was in the Eastern caste system. If she had any royal blood flowing in her veins, any man that has gazed upon her uncovered face before marriage would be forced to marry her on the pain of death. Veering on the side of caution, Sesshoumaru settled for reading her eyes.

"What is your full name?"

She hesitated.

"I will know if you are lying."

The woman shot him a look.

"Ladies do not lie." She said stiffly.

Sesshoumaru raised his eyebrow.

"Do they not?"

"Not to anything they would admit. They merely omit truths." She said slowly with a half-smile.

Sesshoumaru inwardly smirked. He had her.

"And do you as you put it, "omit truths."

She stared straight at and through him.

"Everyone does."

Surprised by her admission, he asked the question that he had been wondering since her arrival.

"Then are you admitting that the letters are fake?"

She smiled benignly.

"That is for me to know and for you to find out."

Unsettled by her challenge. he roughly shoved the interrogation back where he wanted it to be.

"Give me your full name."

He had the feeling that she had just raised her eyebrows at him but her mask obscured her expression.

"Lady Xian-Feng Merriyht Shangjulast of the Tanjile."

Sesshoumaru barely forced down his reaction. The East was split up into five different regions. _Luydae, Yedast, Tanjile, Bendel _and_ Vyana._ Each region was governed by a _Ljake, _the equivalent of a royal duke or a minor prince_. Tanjile_ was the one of the most powerful and influential regions.Then each region was further cut down into provinces and districts. The provinces werewatched over _Jedyts _and _Diyams. _These titles were the equivalent of earls and barons respectively. _Jedyts _and _Diyams _answered to the _Ljakes_ who answered to the king of Eastern kingdom. _Ljakes _and the king had their own estates on top of those that were governed by the lesser titles.

"Title?"

"This is quite rude." She said suddenly.

"If _you_ didn't know. I am the crown prince and heir to the Western throne and despite whatever rank you are in the Eastern kingdom, I am allowed to be rude. You on the other hand, answer to me."

Lady Xian-Feng's eyes were narrowed with anger. She closed her eyes and when she opened them, they were calm. Sesshoumaru knew that only strictest discipline kept her from going for his throat despite his high rank.

"Title?" He couldn't help but wheedle at her.

"Lady of the Tanjile." She said stiffly.

Sesshoumaru almost dropped the pen that he was holding. He would have never guessed that she was of such high rank. The highest that rank that he would guessed her to be was a _Diyam_'s daughter. He would have never thought that she would a titleholder herself. Despite the East's penchant for deeming a woman the inferior sex, they were allowed to hold the title in the instance that a male heir could not be provided. They would hold the title until a son was born. Such titleholders were extremely sought after due to the fact that their husbands would ultimately gain the power of the title she held until a son was born. If a son was born, then the title would stay within the family. If not, then it would move onto the next male relative in the woman's family. Female titleholders were extremely rare since Eastern men often had at least two wives. Sesshoumaru had only heard of this happening but never met a female titleholder himself until now.

Sesshoumaru began to understand why she would take such drastic measures to marry Miroku. Marrying any Eastern man with some noble blood running through his veins would spell the end of her freedom. He knew that a woman used wielding so much power will not easily capitulate under a man's rule. He could not see her meekly fading into the background as expected of a traditional Eastern lady. Lady Xian-Feng apparently knew that and came up with the cunning plan to marry a foreigner so that she would have a husband to produce a male heir but still retain the power and freedom that she had before. As a pervert and an easy to manipulate male, Miroku would have the perfect candidate for a figurehead husband. After getting an heir, she could foist him onto a second wife and continue on with the freedom that she enjoyed before. It was a perfect plan. Sesshoumaru started to feel a grudging spark of respect for the woman in front of him. All she needed was for Miroku to comply.

"You didn't sell your estates." Sesshoumaru stated quietly.

"No, I didn't." Lady Xian-Feng said without the slightest hesitation. "That would have caused a huge commotion in the East."

"Hmm.."

That was true. A _Ljake_ held dominion over so much land. She would not have been able to sell off her estates. Her relatives would have been out for her blood if they haven't already just due to the fact that she was still alive.

"Who knows that you are here?"

"No one except for my servants."

"Then that means that no one will know what happened to you if you just so happened to...disappear."

"Untrue." She said nonchalantly. "I left behind a letter with my steward. If he does not receive a letter at least once every week, he would send my letter to the Emperor."

"And what he do if he received such a letter?" Sesshoumaru asked.

He inwardly flinched from the note of curiosity that toned his question.

"Depends on he feels about the West at that time. He has his own personal reasons."

"And what makes keeps these "personal reasons" from checking on you?"

"I sent him a letter telling him that I am quarantined on an estate taking care of my sick niece."

"Lying to your Emperor is treason," He remarked casually as if he was commenting on the weather.

"I'm merely bending the truth of my true purpose and destination. As I am in your castle at the moment, I am just as far away and unreachable as I would be if I to be quarantined. As for taking care of my niece, I am taking care of my future, which is more important than anything else."

All of her reasoning was delivering in the same blasé tone that had matched his challenge. He searched her eyes for deceit. She openly stared back at him with guileless eyes. There was a backbone of steel under all those layers of pretty silk.

"Fair enough. What do I get out of harboring a fugitive from the Eastern lands?"

Sesshoumaru saw amusement flicker in her eyes.

"I'm barely a fugitive from the East." She said sweetly. "You should see me as an envoy from the East. A very, very honoured guest. If Western hospitality lives up to its name, you would find that the East would be much more welcoming towards an alliance."

She was good. Sesshoumaru gave her credit for choosing a subject that she knew that he would be interested in. The affairs between the East and the West were precarious at the best. His father had been trying to garner an alliance prior to his illness. Sesshoumaru did not know how to approach the East without appearing weak. Yet, he was not willing to offer himself up to the traditional sacrifice of matrimony. He would do some in due time but he had no intention of doing so while there were other methods. For some reason, he felt that Lady Xian-Feng was aware of that.

"Do you know what you are offering?"

"If I wasn't aware of it then I wouldn't have offered it. It's merely a suggestion." She shrugged gracefully with a slight rise and fall of her shoulders. "I haven't promised anything. The final decision would be the Emperor's."

Her final words convinced him more than anything she had said so far. In this, Lady Xian-Feng was being truthful. It was true that she didn't promise him anything.

"In return, I assume you expect my silence about your true purpose?"

"You're free to tell Miroku whatever you like. Informing him of my plight may invoke some innate sense of chivalry to rescue the damsel in distress."

Sesshoumaru was aware that he had been outplayed and maneuvered into a corner. He wanted that alliance and if that meant that he had to allow this woman free rein of his court for a month or so then so be it.

"We have a deal."

...

The minute that he had dismissed her from his office, Kagome was dying to be alone in her room. She wondered whether her guide was the slowest in the castle. His slow shuffling steps made it seem like an eternity before they reached her suites. He probably thought that a gently raised lady like her would be panting from exertion if she took a slightly longer stride. Kagome had to exercise all of her restraint to not strangle the page so he wouldn't slow down another person with his slow walk.

When they reached her rooms, she gave him a curt nod and had the door closed before he finished his bow. Kagome stripped off layer by layer and was down to her shift by the time she made it to her bedroom. She jumped onto her bed belly first and flipped over to stare at the ceiling with arms and legs spread out wide. That was stressful. She had not expected Sesshoumaru to force a confrontation so soon. Kagome thought wryly to herself that he probably didn't want her to completely unpack before sending her away. He definitely wasn't expecting her to pull a move like that on him.

In a way, the interrogation turned out to be a success for Kagome. Everything she said was the minimal truth except for the bit about finding a husband. Kagome had no intention of leg-shackling herself to man in this lifetime. The lines have been set and her alibi was secure. People were very much influenced by first impressions. From now on, Sesshoumaru would not see her as anything more than a conniving woman on a selfish mission to maintain her freedom and power. She was certain that Sesshoumaru would do a background check on her to verify her truths but that would take at least a month. Kagome planned to finish her mission before the month was over.

The challenge has been sent out and answered. Now all Kagome had to do was wait for the Inutashio's birthday to come around at the end of the month.

...

Long after she left, Sesshoumaru found that he couldn't return to his papers. He was busy figuring out the conundrum of the female brain. He would have never thought that a woman would go as far to carry out an elaborate ploy such as this to trap a man into marriage. In all four kingdoms, virtue and reputation was valued above everything in a noble lady. A soiled princess was worth even less than a virtuous baron's daughter. This was why Sesshoumaru was so confused. If Miroku agreed to marry her then at best, she would maintain her freedom. But if Miroku refused then she would be even worse off than before without a protector and a destroyed reputation. She would stand to lose her title or be forced to marry the most undesirable man possible. Apparently, this was an all or nothing gamble that she was preparing to take.

If anything, their confrontation has shaken him more than he would ever admit to. He was uncomfortable about how easily she manipulated him. She had read him like a book and used her connection to the East as leverage to getting what she wanted. He was quite thankful that it was Miroku that she had her eye set on. Most of the questions that he had been meaning to ask her had been forgotten until their verbal sparring. She had easily fended off his interrogation and had been at ease the whole time that she was in his study. Somehow, she had even known about the chairs. Lady Xian-Feng had taken on look at the chairs set up across his desk and knew. She had taken an armchair that had forced him to turn his body to face her. It was as if she expected this all along. Was this woman the product of what happens when one gives a woman too much power? This overabundance of self-confidence and self-assurance?

Her attire was another line of defense and illusion. Dressed in warm, pastel colours, she imparted a sense of refinement and gentility that only a woman was capable of. If anything, the pretty silks and her masks were an elaborate disguise to befuddle the simple male brain. A clever disguise to hide the cunning mind devoted to roping a poor sod into matrimony to serve her own devilish purposes. She had answered all his questions and looked back at him with apparently no guilt at all. She was too innocent. He already had his people checking out her alibi but he knew that it would take at least a month and a half for them to come back with information about her. That was probably what that sly minx was counting on. Whether or not she had fed him lies, one thing that he knew for certain was that she was dangerous.

...


	18. Chapter 18

_**Dear readers**_

_**I AM SO SORRY. I spent my whole day working on chapter 18 and I stupidly posted up chapter 18 of my other story on here. Sorry once again and I promise to get more sleep so I won't do something stupid like this again =(**_

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 18**_

Feeling exhausted after a full day of events, Kagome ate a light dinner delivered from the kitchens. With Lisette's help, she changed into a light sleeping robe and was lying in bed, reading a book that she brought along with her. Even though she was engrossed in her book, her keen ears picked up the sound of knocking on her door. Lisette answered the door and brought a note to Kagome.

"For you, my lady."

"Thank you."

Kagome put her book on her lap and read the note.

_Dear Lady Xian-Feng,_

_The news of your arrival has reached my ears and it would be my honour to be the first to welcome you to the Western Lands. It would please me greatly if you joined me for dinner tonight._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Lady Sango Torashi_

Kagome fingered Lady Sango's stylized crest of the wisteria at the bottom. She folded the note in half and put it on her bed stand.

"Can you please hand me the box on the desk?"

"Certainly, my lady."

Lisette hurried to do her bidding. Kagome accepted the box with both hands and placed it on her lap. Lisette looked on curiously and gave a small gasp of surprise when Kagome opened it to reveal a treasure trove of writing supplies. Placing the bottle of ink on her bed stand and a quill in her mouth, Kagome slid the two panels of the box towards the center to create a flat writing surface. She took the sheet of parchment on the desk and began composing her reply.

_Dear Lady Torashi,_

_I must offer my sincere apologies for your kind invitation. I have already eaten and am quite exhausted from my journey earlier today. I apologize once again and hope that we will have another chance in the future to get to know each other. If it is not too forward of me, would you join me for an early lunch tomorrow morning at 11 o'clock?_

_Looking forward to making your acquaintance,_

_Lady Xian-Feng_

Kagome signed the letter with her signature and deliberately did not add in a closing remark above her name. Anything else would have showed her hand and declared her position before she had even met the woman. Skimming over her letter a third time, she checked to make sure everything was perfect. Finally satisfied, she folded the note crisply in half and handed it to Lisette.

"Can you please send this to Lady Sango?"

"Certainly miss."

Lisette took herself out the door. Kagome smiled softly and picked up her book from beside her. Within minutes, all thoughts of Lady Sango and court intrigue floating around in her head fled in the wake of her novel.

...

Lady Sango stared at the returning note in disbelief. It was only six o'clock and Lady Xian-Feng had already had dinner and was about to go to bed? She wasn't intimately acquainted with Eastern traditions but the stories that Miroku told her about the parties in the Eastern lands had her wondering whether it was just an excuse to turn down her invitation. If her excuse was the truth then she would have to reassess her expected opinion of this woman. This would be no firecat hellion here to wrench Miroku away from her. Lady Xian-Feng would be more of a delicate wilting flower! The worst thing was that Sango knew exactly how Miroku reacted to such delicate wilting flowers. He couldn't resist them.

Sango had intended to invite the woman over and get to know her on her terms and in her domain. Instead, the woman had completely turned the tables on her and set a confrontation time and place of her own dictation. Sango read over the note another time for double entendres. To her eyes, the note seemed innocent and as friendly as the words proclaimed but Sango wasn't entirely sure. Sighing with resignation, she decided to take Lady Xian-Feng's note at face value. There was no point trying to decipher such a simple note. Pulling out another piece of parchment, Sango penned a quick reply to Lady Xian-Feng's invitation. Sango had lost the element of surprise but she will be ready tomorrow.

...

Kagome followed her usual schedule and rose at the crack of dawn. She had given orders to Lisette the night before to prepare an Eastern styled luncheon favoured by those at court. Lisette had informed Kagome than she knew someone who could prepare such a meal. She had also promised that her orders would be fulfilled to the very last letter. Kagome was quite curious to see what concept of Eastern cooking that the Western cooks were led to believe in. The meal itself was not the important part of this meeting. Today's luncheon would be the first time that she would meet her "competition", Lady Sango, Miroku's fiancée. Kagome respected the fact that Lady Sango had initiated the first contact by inviting her to dinner last night but Kagome was no fresh faced lady eager to please. Years of acting as an ambassador and the head of the far reaching Northern spy network had enabled her to easily see through Lady Sango's apparently friendly welcome to the Western lands. It was nothing less than a thinly veiled confrontation. Kagome expected it to be less strenuous then her meeting with Lord Sesshoumaru. Yesterday's meeting was a highborn lady submitting to a foreign prince's authority. Today, the tables would be turned.

From the brief debriefing that Lisette told her, Lady Sango was an earl's daughter. Orphaned during a devastating epidemic that wiped out all of her relatives except for her and her younger brother, she inherited her family estates and the guardianship of her younger brother. Known for her straight forward and practical manner towards, the other court ladies looked down upon Sango. As the reigning lady of her region, Kagome was of a higher rank than Sango. Kagome would be able to hold this title advantage over Sango exactly like how Sesshoumaru did yesterday. A slight knock sounded on the door. Kagome took a look at the timepiece on the wall and smiled. It was precisely 11 o'clock on the dot. Kagome always liked people who were on time. She could learn to like this woman.

...

Sango had rarely been to this part of the palace before. This particular section of the palace was reserved for honoured guests. Just by placing Lady Xian-Feng in this wing, Lord Sesshoumaru had publicly declared that she was an honoured guest. This didn't help the nervous fluttering in her stomach. Sango reminded herself that she was also a lady and had absolutely nothing to be nervous about because it didn't matter what this woman thought of her. This was war.

Filled with determination, Sango gestured for her maid to knock on the door. When the door opened, nothing could have prepared her for the sight before her eyes. Lady Xian-Feng was seated on a straight back chair looking like the very picture of a highborn lady. Lady Xian-Feng rose gracefully to greet her. Dressed in silks of deep red and the palest pink, Lady Xian-Feng looked like an exotic princess from abroad. Matching silk slippers peeked from beneath her hem as she walked towards her. Beautiful long gold earrings dangled from her ears. Lush red lips curved into a welcoming smile from beneath her delicate butterfly pink and gold mask. Sango was momentarily speechless. From what she could see, Lady Xian-Feng was stunning.

"Welcome! I am Lady Xian-Feng."

The lady in front of her bobbled slightly in greeting. Sango automatically curtseyed in return. Lady Xian-Feng tsked.

"No need to be so formal," she said jovially. "I have a feeling that we will be the best of friends."

To her amazement, the sophisticated lady linked elbows with her and lead her to the table. Feeling like the country bumpkin, Sango couldn't help but be captivated by the elaborate tea ceremony set out on the table. She watched with interest as Lady Xian-Feng prepared tea for the both of time.

"This tea is from the mountains of the East. It is of the highest quality. Unfortunately, we are not back at my estate or I would have several more varieties for you to try."

The woman paused in her ministrations and looked up.

"Oh! Please do sit!"

Sango blushed and sat. She wondered how Lady Xian-Feng managed to make tea without setting her long sleeves on fire. She would have knocked everything off the table and spilt boiling water on everything. Lady Xian-Feng executed every crisp movement with grace and precision. A few minutes later, Lady Xian-Feng placed a cup of steaming tea in front of her.

"Thank you." Sango finally said.

Lady Xian-Feng poured another cup for herself and replaced the pot of boiling water on the burner.

"How do you like it?" Lady Xian-Feng asked.

Sango hesitated and asked. "Do you have milk or sugar?"

Lady Xian-Feng gave a tinkling laugh as clear as crystal chimes.

"Eastern tea is appreciated without milk or sugar. It allows one to thoroughly enjoy the taste of tea without the other conflicting flavours."

Sango tried to cover up her ignorance of Eastern teas with nonchalance.

"Alright."

Sango tastes the tea and choked. She tried to mask it but that made it worse. She ended up making a spectacle of herself and almost hacking out a lung. Lady Xian-Feng sympathetically poured her a cup of water. Sango accepted it gratefully and gulped it down. Gasping for breath, Sango pushed herself back up into sitting position. Lady Xian-Feng pushed the teacup with the tea towards Sango. She tried not to make a face of disgust.

"The bitter taste takes some getting used to. Try it again." Lady Xian-Feng urged. "It will be better the second time around."

Not really wanting to try the tea again but obligated by the rules of hospitality, Sango took a small sip of the tea. Lady Xian-Feng was right. The tea was still bitter but to her surprise, it left a very cool and refreshing aftertaste in her mouth. The tea improved with each sip. It was amazing! Only when her teacup was empty did she look back at her hostess. Lady Xian-Feng was watching her with a small smile on her face. Her eyes twinkled from behind her mask.

"More?"

"Yes, please."

Lady Xian-Feng picked up the teapot and poured her a fresh cup of tea. It was then that Sango realized that Lady Xian-Feng's own teacup was still half full. Sango blushed as Lady Xian-Feng refilled her teacup.

"What is this tea called?" Inquired Sango. "It is very good."

Lady Xian-Feng beamed.

"I'm glad you like it. Bo-Lei is an acquired taste but most definitely one of my favourite teas." Lady Xian-Feng looked at her curiously. "Are you hungry?"

Sango started to say no automatically but then she realized that she was hungry.

"Yes."

"Perfect."

"This tea is supposed to aid with digestion and help with the appetites."

Lady Xian-Feng moved up a small bell and rang it. Her maid materialized almost instantly.

"Can you please inform the kitchen that we are ready?"

"Certainly, my lady."

Her maid dipped a quick curtsey and took off to do her bidding.

"Did you bring her with you?" Sango asked.

"No." Lady Xian-Feng sipped her tea. "Speed was of the essence so I left all my servants back at home."

"Oh."

"Lady Torashi-"

"Call me, Sango." She said automatically and accidentally interrupting Lady Xian-Feng. "All my friends call me, Sango."

Lady Xian-Feng looked slightly taken aback and said, "Sango...that's a beautiful name."

Sango inwardly smacked herself on the head. She did it again by being a blubbering fool. Sango completely forgot that people were a lot more conservative in the East. She was willing to bet her favourite hairpin that Lady Xian-Feng would have never made a faux-pas like that in her life. It was just that her mother had always held the title of Lady Torashi and she couldn't stand being called by a title that she didn't believe belonged to her. Sango was more than aware that she wasn't eloquent with words or possess the right finesse with etiquette. With her parents departed to the Afterlife, she had spent most of her life pushing the boundaries of society's dictates by raising her younger brother. Sango didn't have time to pay heed to such fripperies in life. She wore what was comfortable and said whatever was on her mind. By doing so, she knew that she exasperated many a court lady with her "uncouth ways". Miroku had accepted her..for her. Sango thought that loving him would be enough in return and that with his love, she could conquer any situation. But now that she was sitting across from her competition for Miroku's affections, she wasn't so sure anymore.

"Sango...I will call you by your given name t if you would address me as Xia."

It was Sango's turn to be taken aback.

"Does it mean anything?"

"No. It is a pet-name that my father gave me."

"Your father must have loved you very much."

The twinkle in Xia's eye faded.

"He did but he was brutally murdered on the way home from a journey."

"My condolences." Sango said quietly.

"Thank you."

Sango saw Xia reach up discretely to brush away a tear. At that moment, Lisette entered with a procession of servants. Sango watched in open mouthed astonishment as dish after dish of food was placed on the table. Tantalizing aroma wafted up from each delicately crafted confection. After what seemed like an endless supply of food, the servants disappeared.

"Are we expecting more people?" Sango asked hesitantly.

"Just you and me." Xia grinned. "Go ahead. You said that you were hungry."

Sango picked up a pair of gilded chopsticks by her side and selected what appeared to be a dumpling. With it's semi-transparent skin, Sango could see a hint of orange and green inside. Across from her, she could see Xia helping herself to some food.

Sango was startled when Xia suddenly put down her chopsticks and exclaimed, "Oh! My mother would have been ashamed of me. I completely forgot to explain what we are eating!"

Xia rose out of her sit and pushed her sleeves back to her elbow.

"This is called 早茶. When directly translated, the words mean _early tea_. It is an early luncheon favoured by those of the Eastern court."

"Cho cha?" Sango repeated carefully.

The corner of Xia's mouth twitched in amusement.

"Close enough. Many dishes of food are prepared in small quantities so that the diners could sample many a variety without getting full. As the name itself explains it, the meal is taken with tea."

"There is a lot of food. How are we going to be able to finish it?"

Xia laughed.

"Trust me. You will be able to finish this easily."

Sango eyed the buffet spread out of the table doubtfully. In her opinion, there would be more than enough to feed two more guests.

"The dumpling you have selected is called shrimp dumpling with bean sprouts inside. This one is of sticky rice and meat..."

The list went on and on. Sango lost track of what was in each dish long before Xia stopped explaining.

"And that is it. I apologize for the small number of dishes. Due to the short notice, the kitchens were only able to recreate twenty of my requested dishes."

Sango's brain spun at the thought of how many dishes Xia would have considered acceptable for the two of them.

"I have kept you waiting long enough. Go ahead and try anything you like!"

Sango bit into her shrimp dumpling and almost moaned aloud at the concoction of flavours in her mouth. The freshness of the shrimp and the garlic blended nicely to increate a savory treat for the senses. Emboldened by the deliciousness of her first dish, she selected a small steaming bundle wrapped with string. Unwrapping the bundle, the scent of lightly spiced rice wafted up to her nose. She took a small bite and the taste of a rich spice exploded in her mouth.

"What is this again? I've never tasted something like this in my life!" Sango exclaimed.

Xia had a self-satisfied smile on her face.

"You couldn't have. This is called _saffron_. A completely new spice currently cultivated at my estate. It will be released to the markets this fall."

"Wow."

"Keep on eating."

"Gladly."

Before she knew it, all of the food was gone.

"Oh my..."

"Have you had enough?" Xia asked.

"For sure! I'm completely full! I can't believe that we finished all of that food!"

"It's not that much. You should go to a formal Eastern banquet sometime. We have ten course meals. Those who want to show off their wealth have even more."

Sango stared.

"How do you keep so thin?"

"Exercise." Xia said simply. "All court ladies are expected to learn every single style of traditional dance and be able to perform for her guests."

"Oh."

Sango hesitated.

"Yes, Sango? Do you have something you wish to say?"

Sango decided to just blurt it out.

"I want to thank you for your hospitality and it seems like a poor way to thank you by hiding my true identity from you." Sango took a deep breath. "I'm Miroku's fiancée."

"I know."

Sango stared at her.

"You know?"

Xia shrugged gracefully.

"This palace has no secrets."

"Then why did you invite me?"

"It was the right thing to do." Xia smiled softly. "And I realized when I got here that it was not up to either of us to make the decision. There is no point competing with you because it is Miroku who makes the final decision."

Sango was stunned. She had never thought about it that way. Xia was right. The decision was not up to either of them. Sango smiled ruefully to herself.

"You are right and here I am planning to interrogate you on your intentions."

"My intentions have been stated clearly enough." Xia took a sip of her tea. "I am here to marry Miroku but whether or not he lives up to his promise is his decision alone."

Then Xia held out her hand to Sango in a very Western manner. "Friends?"

"Friends."

...

Kagome sat down in what was quickly becoming her favourite armchair and watched Lisette clear away the table.

"She seems nice doesn't she, Lisette?"

"Yes, she does, my lady."

"By the way, great job on the early luncheon today. I was quite impressed with what your friend in the kitchen came up with on such a short notice. I couldn't tell that it wasn't straight from the East."

Lisette blushed.

"He's from the East, my lady. Lord Sesshoumaru had gone on a trip to the East and enjoyed his cooking so much that he had wagered with the Emperor for him."

"Oh really?"

Kagome was in the Northern lands when that wager happened but she heard it in more than enough detail through her spy network. The version that the Emperor sympathizers related back to her was more than slightly skewed. It involved a lot of shouting about a certain Lord Sesshoumaru "cheating". Even though it happened such a long time ago, she was still interested to hear the Western version of the story.

"It was such an uproar!" Lisette said excitedly. "My previous mistress had been in the Eastern court at that time so I was there for the spectacle. The Emperor had wagered that Lord Sesshoumaru would not be able to hit a post with his daggers at 500 paces. Lord Sesshoumaru had not only hit the post but lined them up in a perfect straight line."

"What is the name of your friend?"

"Master Chef Bouyin."

Kagome felt a chill go down her spine. How could she have forgotten about him? She would have to be very careful around him. Kagome had met the chef personally. He could verify her Lady Xian-Feng persona or destroy it by naming her as Lord Kagome. Kagome was always leery of those with extraordinary artistic talent. They noticed things that other people would not usually see.

"I would like to meet with him some time in the future. I have made my acquaintance with him back in the Eastern lands. It would be nice to reacquaint myself with him."

"I will certainly tell him that!" Lisette bubbled. "Do you have any more plans for today, my lady?"

"Not for the moment. I might take a walk in a bit."

"Ring for me if you need me."

"Will do."

Lisette dipped a curtsey and left the room with the remains of Kagome's first encounter with Lady Sango.

...


	19. Chapter 19

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

_**CHAPTER 19**_

As Lord Sesshoumaru or Sesshypoo as she had cruelly nicknamed him in her head had not confined her to house arrest, she had set out to explore the palace in more detail. She had already spent the better half of her hour wandering around the seemingly unending hallways. Throughout her exploration, she had quickly located the palace's main dining hall and other open areas for the courtiers to mingle. Kagome had received several curious looks but she had quickly taken herself before someone could hail her. She avoided the rooms that were occupied. She didn't feel like making any self-introductions or spending the rest of her day simpering over tea and explaining the mysteries of Eastern culture. Kagome would have to make a proper entrance into Sesshoumau's court soon enough. Then she will answer the inevitable questions. Until then, she was determined to enjoy her limited freedom to do some reconnaissance.

Her previous mission as the Queen's lady in waiting allowed her to be familiar with all of the public passageways but due to her exile status, the more luxurious parts of the castle eluded her. Knowing from experience that knowing the layout of a palace could make tip the scales between life and death, Kagome carefully memorized her routes. _Knowledge is power. _Kagome was going to remedy that that missing factor right now.

Crossing her hands behind her back, Kagome reminded herself that she had all the time in the world to shuffle along. She never understood how the Eastern women could keep up the pretense of graceful swans at all times in their life. Kagome had been in the castle for not even two days and she was slowly going insane. Knowing what to expect, she had rode across the open acres around her estate in the Eastern lands with a vengeance before setting out on this mission. She thought that it would be enough to last her for at least a few weeks but just like her previous mission, she was dying to jump onto a horse and gallop across green fields. Suddenly feeling claustrophobic within these cold stone walls, she headed blindly down the hall towards the smell of sunshine.

She burst out into the open sunshine and stopped to regain her breath. She closed her eyes and leaned against the wooden doorframe. Kagome could still feel her heart thumping erratically in her chest.

"Do you make it a habit to dash wildly about the palace to disturb people?" An unamused voice remarked dryly from a hidden part of that garden.

Kagome startled and looked for the speaker. Yet, she could not see anyone except for a flash of white...

"My apologies, Lord Sesshoumaru." Kagome said and almost bowed.

She caught herself in time and sank into a graceful curtsey.

"I was not aware that there was someone else in this beautiful garden." She continued and prayed that he did not catch her lapse.

"Hnnn...explain why you were running as if the hounds of hell were on your heels."

Kagome followed the sound of his voice to the center of the garden. Kagome couldn't help but admire the natural perfection of the scene. Dressed in a plain black kimono with a white under robe, the stark colours contrasted against his pale complexion. His simple clothing emphasized the strong lines of his shoulders and his broad chest. Legs crossed and held in the precise relaxed stance of meditation, he was perched on a harsh stone bench. His long white hair was held back from his face by a simple leather tie. Kagome was stunned by the sight of his burgundy stripes on his high cheekbones illuminated by the broad daylight. She was surprised to note that his ears that usually hid behind his hair were tapered into delicate points. Everything about him seemed so gracefully and finely carved. With his hair tied back, he looked much younger and carefree. Not for the first time, she wondered about his exact age. Taking her attention off Lord Sesshoumaru, she focused on the rest of the garden. The area around him was covered with large stone tiles. Several more stone benches and small tea tables were scattered around the alcove. Behind him was a gently swaying willowy tree. It's curved arcing symmetry provided calculated imperfection in a stone garden of stillness. Compared to the gentle, soft beauty of the rest of the garden, it was obvious that this stone garden was meant to convey discipline and order.

Kagome took a seat on one of the stone benches facing Sesshoumaru. The stone bench was exactly as uncomfortable as it looked. She did not know how he was able to sit there with a neutrally blank expression on his face. From her observation, he must have been there for at least half an hour already.

"I asked you a question."

Kagome forced her face to mirror his emotionless mask.

"Is it any of your business? I have my own secrets."

"Hmmm. In this palace, there are no secrets." He murmured.

"I would believe that to be untrue." She countered. "There are probably no secrets kept from _you_ but you would certainly have your own secrets."

"If I know my own secrets, then it would not be a secret."

Kagome made a non-committal noise of agreement. Throughout their whole exchange, he had not opened his eyes. He had been able to hear and discern her presence using his other senses. Sitting there with his legs crossed and his hands placed on his knees, he should have looked vulnerable and defenseless. Instead, Kagome sensed a latent aura of power radiating from him. It tingled along her flesh and made the hair on her alarms rise. Gooseflesh prickled her arms. She forced her hands to stay loosely clasped in her lap.

"You still have not answered my question."

"Not every question you ask will have an answer."

"Now you are deliberately avoiding my question."

"I have answered your question but it was not the answer you sought."

"An apology is not the answer to my question."

"No, it is not. I gave you the answer to my question but you chose to disregard it."

"A question to a question is not an answer."

"An answer is given of free will."

"Not when I have asked you a direct question."

"How do you know there is an answer if you asked a question to seek its answer?"

To her surprise, the corner of his mouth twitched. She tried not to give any reaction when he opened his eyes. Dry amusement sparkled in his golden orbs.

"Touche."

Kagome inclined her head graciously.

"For ceding this argument to me so gracefully, I will give you the answer that you seek." Kagome took a deep breath and decided to give him the truth. "I was running because of the shadows left over by my childhood."

Lord Sesshoumaru gave no expression so Kagome continued. "During my childhood, my home was invaded by raiders. My father had been away on business and it was just my mother, several servants and myself. We had several guards but the numbers that the raiders mustered quickly overwhelmed them. My mother had hid me in a hole in the floor and covered it with a dresser. It was small, dark and there was very little air for me to breath. I couldn't see but I could hear my mother's screams as they killed her."

Kagome looked straight at the still emotionless Lord Sesshoumaru. "My father found me hours later and I was exhausted from screaming and trying to dig my way out. Ever since that night, I have been leery of small spaces. And this was why I ran."

"I see. My condolences for your mother."

She searched his face for some reaction. As she expected, she found none. Kagome looked in his eyes but he had closed them again. He couldn't possibly know that it was his father than ordered the hunt for Kagome and her mother or would he? A slightly awkward silence stretched between them after Kagome's confession. She felt like an intruder in his private sanctuary. Kagome jolted. Thisprobably_ was_ his private sanctuary. Her mind spun as she observed the garden with a different mindset. Her mind finally registered the royal crests stamped into the stone benches. In fact, the structure of the garden was oddly familiar. Her eyes widened as she realized that the whole garden was designed to create the Inutashio crest. The stone garden shaped the body of the dog demon while the copse of sakura trees in the distance coloured in the carpet of flowers. To finish it off, there was a round clear pond with giant koi swimming lazily in the depths. At night, the surface of the pond would shine clear like the moon. There was no doubt, she was in the royal gardens. Kagome wanted to slap herself silly. She didn't even know how she got to the gardens in her panic. She was quite surprised that Lord Sesshoumaru hasn't ordered her execution for invading his meditation or at the very least, kick her out of his garden. Kagome wouldn't have blamed him. He would be within his rights for her trespassing. If she had found someone in snooping around her den, she would have either killed them or forced something down their throat to induce memory loss and the great ancestor of all hangovers. Which way she dealt with them depended on how much she liked them.

While she was thinking, Kagome unconsciously began absently tapping her slippered foot on the ground. The sound was nearly imperceptible to her human ears but her eyes caught the barest movement from Lord Sesshoumaru. When she looked at him fully, it was as if it never happened. To test her suspicions, she watched him closely as she continued her tapping. Kagome stifled a smile as she watched his nose twitch slightly in annoyance. Feeling wicked, she increased her tapping to double time. The corner of his eye started twitching in time to her tapping. Exactly when she was certain that he was going to reprimand her, a small flash of colour dashed across the gap between Lord Sesshoumaru and herself.

To her surprise, there was a young girl standing in front of Lord Sesshoumaru. A young _human _girl.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!" She sang in a sing-a-song chant.

Kagome couldn't help but raise her eyebrow at the girl's disheveled appearance. It was obvious that someone went to the effort to give the little girl some semblance of civilization. Those efforts would have probably lasted less than 15 minutes. The beautiful miniature kimono ensemble of orange and yellow patchwork that the little girl was wearing had seen better days. There were patches of dirt and unidentifiable stains on the fabric. Looking past the stains, Kagome could tell that the fabric was the most expensive that money could buy. Anything else would not have been able to keep up with the little girl. She bounced from side to side on her toes and beamed up at the stoic looking lord. The little girl had a small bit of hair tied to the side of the head while the rest of her hair jumbled wildly around her exuberant face. She had a smudge of dirt on a cheek and had apparently lost her shoes.

"Rin."

Kagome watched with an amused smile on her face as Rin visibly tried to quell her excitement. She stopped bouncing but still fidgeted from side to side. She gazed up at Lord Sesshoumaru as if the entire universe revolved around him. Rin probably thought it did.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!" Rin gave a grin so wide that Kagome was surprised that her little face didn't crack.

"Manners." Lord Sesshoumaru reminded her.

Rin stopped fidgeting and looked baffled. She spun around and gasped when she saw Kagome.

"You're so pretty! Are you a princess?"

Kagome couldn't help but give an unladylike grin in return.

"No, I am not."

"Rin."

The little girl sighed and sank into a low curtsey obligingly.

"How do you do? Nice to meet you-" She froze and looked to Lord Sesshoumaru in askance.

"Lady Xian-Feng." He supplied.

"Lady Xian-Feng." Rin repeated obediently.

Kagome could not see outward signs of approval from Lord Sesshoumaru but she could feel the pride radiating from his person. She could sense that he was pleased with Rin.

"I'm well. Thank you for asking, my dear. Your name is Rin, right?"

The little girl nodded enthusiastically.

"Would you mind if I called you that?"

"Nope." Rin chirped.

"Well met, Lady Rin."

Kagome rose fluidly from her bench and bit down on her lip to keep from crying out. Her limbs felt like there were stuck full of pins and needles. Ignoring her discomfort, she gave Rin a full Eastern curtsey reserved for royalty. She knew that the significance was not lost on Lord Sesshoumaru.

Rin watched Kagome with wide eyes.

"I was wrong." She breathed. "You're not a princess. You're a goddess that came down from the heavens!"

"Goddesses don't come down to earth." Chided Lord Sesshoumaru.

"They do." Rin insisted stubbornly. "It says so in my books."

Oddly enough, Lord Sesshoumaru did not contradict her.

"Well, Rin. Isn't there something that you're supposed to do?" He said instead.

She scrunched up her face and thought hard about it.

"Nope." She announced.

"Really." Lord Sesshoumaru raised his eyebrows at him. "What about that history lesson you are supposed to be taking with Jaken?"

Rin shuffled and mumbled something that Kagome did not catch.

"You lost Jaken?" Amusement coloured his tone. "Just like how you lost your shoes?"

There was more shuffling and mumbling. Lord Sesshoumaru untangled himself from his meditative pose without any sign of bloodless limbs or discomfort. Kagome watched enviously from afar. It was not fair that the dratted man could sit there for so long and not show any signs of discomfort. Despite the short amount of time that Kagome sat on the bench, she knew that her behind would be tender tomorrow.

Lord Sesshoumaru rested his hand on her head.

"I must go punish Jaken for his incompetence." He stated to RIn.

Rin looked horrorified.

"No, Sesshoumaru-sama!" She cried. "It's Rin's fault for losing Jaken. Don't punish him!"

"Even so, he has failed to keep an eye on you and garner your interest in the subject of history."

Rin was crestfallen and her guilt was written all over her face.

"Let me take his punishment instead!"

"You're willing to take Jaken's punishment?"

"Yes."

"It is a grave punishment." He warned.

Rin hung her head.

"I'll accept it."

"Very well." He cleared his throat. "First, you must find Jaken. Then after you do so, you will go relocate those shoes that Momoji put on you this morning. After that, you will take a bath."

Rin pouted. "I'm not done." Lord Sesshoumaru said sternly. "After your bath, you will have dinner and join me in the evening for your history lesson."

Rin looked up and beamed.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama! I will follow your orders to the letter!"

"Good. Now go find Jaken."

Rin gave Lord Sesshoumaru a curtsey and ran out of the garden. A few moments later, she was back.

"I forgive my rudeness, my lady goddess," She said between taking in huge gulps of air. "I must leave to obey Lord Sesshoumaru. Would you come visit me?" Rin said when a hopefully expression on her face.

Kagome burst out laughing.

"Yes, my dear. I will come visit you." Kagome promised. "Now run along and behave for your tutor."

"Alright! I will! Good bye, my lady goddess!"

With one last grin on her face, she waved good bye and pelted out of the garden at a breakneck speed. Kagome shook her head at Rin's antics.

"Beautiful child." Kagome said to Lord Sesshoumaru who had remained standing. "Is she yours?"

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Most people would have left and waited to ask another person to find out indirectly."

"But then I'd get my answer later and it wouldn't be as fun." She teased playfully. "As you know, I'm more direct than that. So is she?"

Lord Sesshoumaru appeared to contemplate her question.

"No, she is my ward." He paused. "I was traveling to the Northern Lands one day and came across her village ravaged by wolves. Rin was the lone survivor. I took her in.""

"Oh."

Kagome was slightly confused. Sesshoumaru was known for his disdain of humans. Yet, Miroku was an ambassador and there were many permanent human fixations in the Western Court.

"I see that you are confused."

Kagome startled. He could already read her emotions through her mask. Kagome found this new piece of information quite unsettling.

"I am." She admitted. "You are not known for your penchant for humans. Yet, you have a human ambassador and keep a human ward close to you."

He looked up sharply.

"You are really arrogant enough to say what's on your mind and not fear the consequences, aren't you?"

"I know it no other way." Kagome said simply.

"Since you are honest with me, I will be frank with you." He said slowly. "I do not hate humans as per say. I cannot abide incompetence." He looked her in the eye. "From anyone."

Kagome shrugged.

"Fair enough. Incompetence is taxing but as my tutor used to say, "There is no cure for stupidity."

"Wise words."

"I agree."

Sesshoumaru stepped away from his stone bench and began to leave the garden. Kagome fell naturally in line with him.

"I will be having dinner tonight. Join me."

"I will assume that there is a "please" at the end of that sentence." Kagome said dryly.

"No. That's an order."

Then he turned around and left Kagome gaping at his backside like a fish out of water. By the time that she thought of a retort, he was already gone.

"The nerve of that man!" She muttered to herself. "And he calls me arrogant."

Kagome turned the other way to leave the way that she came. It was then that she realized that she had no idea where to go.

"Idiot...idiot..idiot..." she repeated the mantra to herself.

An hour later, Kagome found her way back to her suites.

...


	20. Chapter 20

_**The Assassin's Moon**_

**CHAPTER 20**

Sesshoumaru left the garden by a different route than the one he chose to enter it. For some reason that he could not fathom, he did not want Kagome to know which set of suites was his. He wasn't even certain how she wandered into the garden in the first place. As it was a private garden in the royal wing, the only way to enter the garden was through one of the rooms overlooking into the garden. There were only seven suites looking into the garden. The only occupied rooms belonged to his bastard half-brother, his father, Rin and himself. The other four were empty and blocked off. One of them were used by his mother prior to her disgrace. His mother was banished to a more isolated and less luxurious wing of the palace. More than slightly unsettled, he decided to check on Rin.

He slid open the panel to her rooms. He reminded himself to post guards in the garden. Lady Xian-Feng's seemingly innocent wandering into the garden raised questions about Rin's safety. Taking a step inside, Sesshoumaru came across a scene that had him raising his eyebrows.

"Come back, Rin!" A woman said exasperatedly. "You're going to hurt yourself."

"Wheee!"

A naked Rin covered in soapy bubbles dashed across the room. She left behind wet, soapy footprints on the wooden floor. A disheveled woman ran after the escaping girl. Both participants in the chase were too busy to notice his presence. One as too happy in her soapy escape and the other was intent on catching her slippery charge. Noting that Tatsumi was nowhere close to catch her charge, he cleared his throat.

"Rin."

Both woman and girl froze in their tracks and stared slowly at him. Tatsumi immediately prostrated on the floor.

"My sincere apologies, Your Highness." She said into the wet wooden floor. "I deserve to be punished for my incompetence."

Sesshoumaru eyed the poor shaking woman on the floor. Her kimono was soaking wet and her long black hair escaped from the severe bun at the back of her head.

"Rise." He commanded.

The woman backed off the floor and clasped her hands in front of her with her head hanging down. He could see that the poor woman was exhausted.

"Handle your charge better the next time around." He said dismissively.

The woman startled and bowed several times rapidly.

"Thank you so-"

"Apologies are not needed. My ward is a handful."

Tatsumi opened her mouth to speak but Sesshoumaru held up a hand.

"This does not mean that I would accept chaos. The reason that you were chosen was due to the fact that my ward would need a more...unorthodox way of discipline."

Tatsumi bobbled her head energetically. More of her hair escaped from the confines of her hair tie and tumbled around her face.

"Yes, Your Highness! I understand completely and will not fail you!"

Without another word, he turned to regard the culprit of all this mischief. Rin was humming a nonsensical tune and popping at the soap bubbles left behind by her dash around the room.

"Rin."

She paused in her ministrations to look up expectantly.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Is it time for our history lesson already?" She asked innocently.

Sesshoumaru resisted the urge to smile. Smiling would completely ruin his reputation of being heartless but there was something about Rin that made the corners of his mouth twitch.

"No."

Rin chewed on her lip and appeared to be in deep thought.

"I found Jaken?" She ventured.

"No."

"I found my shoes?"

"No."

"I don't know." She admitted.

"What you were supposed to say was that you were sorry for causing a mess."

"Why?"

Rin looked completely baffled.

"Because young ladies do not wander around naked."

"Why not? It's fun!"

Rin jumped up and spun around in a circle. Only Sesshoumaru's lightning fast reflexes saved his kimono from being splattered with soap bubbles. Tatsumi watched Rin silently with resignation.

Sesshoumaru picked up the spinning Rin with both hands and dumped her back into the bath behind the screen.

"OOH! IT'S COLD!" Rin yelped.

"It wouldn't have been if you did not make such a big fuss over taking a bath. No more fooling around and behave for your nurse." He said sternly.

Rin sighed and slouched down in the tub.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama."

"And if you misbehave, I will hear about it." He warned. "Understood?"

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama. I will behave."

Sesshoumaru nodded towards Tatsumi who approached her now sedate charge.

"Send her to me after dinner."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Tatsumi curtseyed and proceeded to wash Rin who had began to sang another well-known rhyme. Satisfied that Tatsumi had her charge under control, Sesshoumaru continued onto his own suites to change.

...

"That dratted man." Kagome muttered as she stood in front of her wardrobe with her arms crossed. "He launched a dinner invitation to me last minute and he didn't even tell me how formal to dress!" She complained to Lisette who watched her with amusement.

"If you are dining with His Highness, then you should probably wear something more formal for the occasion."

Kagome grimaced at her elaborately embroidered "formal evening wear". Everyday Eastern wear was comfortable and practical but when there was an occasion to dress up, they went full out. Kagome had even packed several elaborate headdresses. These headdresses were made of black horsehair and weighed a ton. Decorated exquisitely with precious gems and metals, they were flashy and extremely eye-catching, Kagome had always thought that those headdresses could have qualified as a deadly weapon if thrown at someone.

"I think I will pass on the formal wear." Kagome admitted. "I don't feel like enduring an aching neck for a dinner possibly set for two."

"Beauty knows no pain, my lady."

"Agreed."

Kagome remembered the shoes with a shiver. On top of the heavy headdress and the layers of robes, women were required to wear platform shoes than balanced on rectangular part in the center. They were designed for the wearer to rock back and forth on that small rectangular piece. Needless to say, good intentions lead straight to Hell. Kagome didn't see the gracefulness or appeal of those shoes except for the added height. One could barely walk in them never mind running. She spent a good portion of her teenage years mastering how to not fall flat on her face. Kagome still remembered those painful lessons of learning how to walk in those platform shoes with a stack of books on the top of her head. She was amazed that the top of her head was not permanently flattened after those exercises. She would love to see Sesshypoo go through the torture that was her teenage years. The ridiculous image of Sesshoumaru wearing platform shoes with a huge stack of books balanced at the top of her head had her snickering. Lisette looked at her in askance.

"Have you ever tried on Eastern platform shoes?" Kagome asked Lisette between her laughter.

"No but I've seen my previous mistress struggling to wear them."

"Would you like to try?"

Lisette shook her head vehemently.

"Not all all, my lady! I'm not going to put those devices of torture on my feet! I am quite happy to stay solidly on the ground."

Kagome grinned.

"Well...when I was younger, I had to learn to walk in those shoes with a stack of books on my head. I was just envisioning Lord Sesshoumaru doing the same."

Lisette snorted and clamped her hand over her mouth to suppress her laugher.

"Excuse me! That's terribly wicked of you, my lady!"

Kagome smiled evilly.

"Knowing His Highness, he would probably be a lot prettier and more graceful than myself in Eastern silks."

Lisette lost the battle against Kagome's humour and laughed out loud. Kagome grinned broadly at the side of Lisette holding her stomach and bracing herself against the wall.

"Mercy! Mercy!" Pleaded Lisette. "This is awfully improper."

Feeling extremely wicked, Kagome continued. "Add on the headdress and the cosmetics and he will need to beat off his admirers with a big stick."

Lisette collapsed to the floor with unstoppable laughter. Tears of mirth rolled down Lisette's cheeks.

"He has a sword, my lady!" She gasped between her laughter. "He has a sword!"

"That would suffice." Kagome said with a huge smile on her face. "Oooh. I feel much better about this dinner now. I'll just imagine him wearing women's wear the whole time."

"Will you be able to last through dinner, my lady?" Lisette asked seriously.

"Probably not but I will have a good time and drive him insane from wondering what I would be laughing about."

Kagome took a seat on the bed and swung her legs back and forth. Lisettte watched Kagome from the floor.

"So Lisette. What do you think I should wear?"

Lisette picked herself off the floor and assumed a business like stance with her arms crossed across her chest.

"Well..I think you should wear..."

...

Sesshoumaru rubbed a hand over his face. Keeping Rin's attention for more than five minutes was harder than he would have accounted for. Every time he started relating a new history lesson to her, she would listen raptly. A few minutes in, she would start fidgeting and by the end of five minutes, she would be bouncing up and down in her chair or opening and closing the leather bound books.

Sesshoumaru gritted his teeth and forced himself not to sneeze as Rin slammed the covers of a particularly dust tome together.

"Rin." He said for the thousandth time today. "Pay attention."

Rin sighed.

"I'm sorry, Sesshoumaru-sama, but it's so hard."

"What is so hard?"

"History." Rin blew up at her bangs. "Is just so boring! I rather go outside to play in the sunshine."

She looked longingly out the library window.

"Playing will not further your knowledge." Sesshoumaru said sternly. "You may not play until you learn your lessons."

Rin looked subdued.

"Alright."

Sesshoumaru continued to read the passage that he had left off. Less than a few seconds in, he began to hear the tapping of a pen. He ignored the noise and continued reading. Moments later, her foot joined the rhythmic tapping. Irritated but refusing to give in, he read on with dogged determination. When her head started bobbling in time to the silent tune that only she could hear, Sesshoumaru could take it no more. He slammed the book shut. Rin jumped a foot into the air.

"Focus, Rin." He commanded. "You will sit there quietly and learn your history even if I have to tie down your arms and legs to that chair. Understood?"

Rin sat straight up in her chair.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama." She said meekly.

And so they spent the next hour with Sesshoumaru reading from the textbook and Rin sitting there staring at him with unwavering intensity. At the end of the passage, Sesshoumaru closed the book gently and looked at Rin. He frowned when she continued to stare at him without blinking.

"Rin?"

There was no reaction from her at all. He reached out and shook her gently on the shoulder. Rin gasped and snapped to attention.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama? I wasn't sleeping!" Rin cried out guilty.

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at her. Rin hung her head and stared down at her lap. She slipped off her chair and knelt on the floor in front of him.

"Sorry, Sesshoumaru-sama. I have been unforgivably disrespectful."

Sesshoumaru stared at her bowed head impassively and picked up her up by the waist. Rin made a soft gasp of surprise as he put her down gently back onto her chair.

"You have been disrespectful, Rin." He said quietly. "You've been extremely distracted of the late. What is the matter?"

Rin stared at her legs swinging back and forth between the legs of the chairs .

"Well...I have a lot on my mind." She admitted.

Sesshoumaru resisted the urge to smile. What would an eight year old have on her mind?

"Well..it's just that I haven't seen Kohaku for a while and I'm worried about him." She blurted out.

Now, Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. Rin blushed. Kohaku was Lady Sango's younger brother. He was a quiet child that had just began his training among Sesshoumaru's troops.

"Why?"

"I just am." She said defiantly with red staining her cheeks.

"If I send Lady Sango a note regarding your visit, do you promise to pay more attention to your studies?"

"YES! THANK YOU SESSHOUMARU-SAMA!"

Rin flew forward and give him a hug. Before Sesshoumaru could even return the hug, Rin stiffened and pulled away. Rin pulled her kimono into its proper place and curtseyed.

"My much gratitude, Sesshoumaru-sama." Rin said politely.

Sesshoumaru nodded and rang a bell.

"You will resume your studies with Jaken tomorrow morning. Now go to your rooms to prepare for dinner."

Tatsumi appeared in the doorway. Rin's nurse was changed into a clean uniform and her hair was back in it's usual severe bun. Tatsumi curtseyed.

"Escort Rin to her room. Give her dinner and prepare her for bed afterwards. I will have an engagement tonight."

Sesshoumaru saw a brief flash of disappointment cross Rin's face before she curtseyed. Tatsumi took her hand and the pair left the room together. Sesshoumaru got up and poured himself a cup of brandy from his cupboard. He couldn't believe that Rin was already having her first infatuation. Her whole demeanor changed the minute that she mentioned Kohaku. Suddenly, she started pulling curtseys here there and everywhere. Only eight years old and she was already leaving her childhood behind. A few more years and he'd be beating suitors off with his sword. Sesshoumaru groaned and tossed his brandy back.

...

Kagome had no idea what to expect for dinner but she was definitely not amused to be standing in front of the closed doors of the dining hall. She had arrived in front of the dining hall precisely at 7 in the evening as he had specified. Looking at the elaborate water clock in the hall, more than 15 minutes have already passed. Many lords and ladies have passed by and looked at her curiously. She has given them a polite nod in return but did not call out a greeting for she had not been properly introduced to the Court yet.

Kagome caught herself about to tap her foot again. It would not do it appear anything less than serene. She glanced at the water clock for the thousandth time. Where _was_ he? If Sesshypoo was trying to make her uncomfortable, he will have to try harder. He will be getting an earful from her about his tardiness. One should never keep a lady waiting.

"Umm...excuse me, my lady?"

Kagome whirled around to locate the speaker. She didn't see anyone until she looked down.

"Yes?"

The short man blushed and fidgeted.

"Lord Sesshoumaru requests your presence on the veranda."

He cringed under Kagome's suddenly frosty look.

"The veranda." She clipped out.

"Yes." Stammered the messenger. "If you would please follow me, my lady."

Kagome mentally counted to ten and reminded herself not to shoot the messenger. She took a deep breath and forced her fury to a low simmer. She would need it when he saw him.

"Lead on." She said smoothly.

The messenger bowed nervously and scurried ahead of her. The short man led her through several long corridors that she recognized from her earlier attempts to return to her rooms after her foray in the royal gardens. Then they turned to the deeper part of the castle that she had yet to explore - the Royal wing. Kagome was aware that the messenger kept sneaking glances at her every so often. She pointedly ignored his glances and continued her cursory inventory of the castle without turning her head. She had noticed from her short adventure in the garden that the architecture of the palace changed gradually as they proceeded deeper into the Royal wing. On the way, they passed through many guards standing on attention in the corridors. Kagome mentally marked the positions of the guards out of habit.

The deeper in the Royal wing they walked, the more obvious the changes. Cold stone turned into the rich tones of wood. Thick carpet turned into soft woven rugs upon the wooden floors. Instead of stone walls, they became surrounded with wood and paper paneling. They stopped in front of a sturdy wooden doorway and the messenger knocked firmly on the wood. The panel slid open and they stepped through into a set of rooms. Another servant bowed as Kagome passed by. She nodded in return. Kagome found it curious that all the furniture had been covered. The room gave off a feeling that it had no been used for a while. Kagome was hurried through the room before she could draw a conclusion. The panels were open to reveal a veranda looking out into the garden. It was peaceful and quiet. Kagome could hear the crickets chirping in the garden. It was like taking a walk back in time.

"You have finally arrived." A familiar dry voice hailed her.

Kagome snapped out of her reverie.

"Your Highness." She bit out and drew a mocking curtsey. She did not go sink down even close to as low as she should have. "You forgot to _specify_ the location of tonight's engagement." Kagome said with a challenge in her eyes.

Impassive golden orbs stared back into her own. Kagome heard a feminine gasp off to the side but didn't want to look away. To be the first to break eye contact would be to concede defeat.

"Oh?" An imperial snowy eyebrow shot up. "I sent a messenger to you to _confirm_ the location of our dinner tonight."

"Obviously I was already gone." She said smoothly. "I didn't want to be _late_ to our engagement. An engagement is a promise."

"Indeed. Even if the details were not confirmed yet?" The insolent man chuckled. "You merely assumed that our dinner would take place in the dining hall."

Inwardly seething, Kagome realized that he was right. She _had_ assumed that it would be in the dining hall. Yet, he was in the err for not notifying her of the location earlier on.

"Never mind." She said airily. "I am here."

He considered her for a moment and turned. Still seeing red, Kagome glided onto the veranda. There was a table set up and already two guests sitting there.

"As you already know, this is Miroku and this is Lady Sango Torashi, his fiancee." Sesshoumaru said with a bit of finality.

Kagome smirked. The bastard wanted to trip her up by inviting her to a dinner with her competition. The possibility that he didn't know that Sango had already introduced herself to Kagome was delicious.

"The introductions are not needed, Your Highness." She said dismissively. "Sango and I have already made our acquaintance."

She gave himself a beatific smile with a bit of gloating that she could not seem to hold back. Kagome saw the briefest flash of irritation flicker across his face. Kagome give Sango a genuine smile and seated herself across from Miroku. She nodded genially to Miroku and frowned at the table setting.

"Are we expecting another?" She asked.

Miroku opened his mouth to answer but Lord Sesshoumaru cut him off.

"I invited another but as usual, I have not gotten a reply. I can say with confidence that he will not be attending tonight's dinner."

"Then you can shove your unwanted confidence back up your ass." Said a masculine voice rudely from the open door.

Kagome turned almost eagerly to see who would take to Mr. High-and-mighty-with-a-stick-up-his-ass in such a manner. She barely managed to keep her shock off her face when she realized that it was another white haired, golden eyed figure. Slightly shorter than Lord Sesshoumaru's lean frame, the newcomer was more muscular. With a scowl on his face and almost unruly hair, he looked less than completely civilized. The similarities and differences were striking with the both of them standing next to each other. The family resemblance could not be ignored. This could be no one other than Lord Sesshoumaru's half-brother, Lord Inuyasha.

"I see you have decided to grace us with your presence." Sesshoumaru said dryly with a cursory glance at his brother.

"Keh. I didn't come for you."

Lord Inuyasha looked around until his eyes lighted upon her. He crossed the distance between them and bowed gallantly.

"My name is Lord Inuyasha. I apologize for my tardiness."

Kagome smiled.

"Please to make your acquaintance, Your HIghness." She said politely. "I was late myself...due to certain difficulties." She said with a glance at Sesshoumaru.

From the tight line of his lip, Sesshoumaru understood exactly that Kagome was referring to him as a difficulty. He did not seem amused. That was exactly the way that she liked it. Blatantly following her line of sight, Lord Inuyasha smirked broadly.

"Anyone who would stand up to my prick of a brother like that is a friend of mine." He announced to the world at large and ignoring his unhappy older half-brother. "Call me, Inuyasha."

The corner of Kagome's lip crinkled up.

"Only if you call me, Xia, in return." She offered.

"Xia." Inuyasha tested her name on his tongue. "Beautiful just like the lady herself."

He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. Feeling slightly disgusted with herself, Kagome dutifully simpered under his attention. This wasn't the first time that someone tried to seduce her like this. Inuyasha would have to try much harder to really turn her head.

"Well...now may we continue with dinner?" Sesshoumaru interjected sarcastically.

Kagome glared at him through his mask. The seemingly more civilized brother was the one without manners.

"Of course." Kagome said smoothly.

"Then we will begin."

…

ATTENTION:

**HELLO EVERYONE.**

**I APOLOGIZE FOR THE LACK OF UPDATE FOR "ASSASSIN'S MOON" THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO COME OUT ON WEDNESDAY. I AM CURRENTLY STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF A COURSE CRISIS WITH MY PROFESSORS. I'M SO STRESSED RIGHT NOW THAT I AM UNABLE TO WRITE. I WILL BE PUTTING BOTH STORIES ON A TEMPORARY HIATUS. I APOLOGIZE ONCE AGAIN FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE THIS MAY HAVE CAUSED AND I SINCERELY HOPE TO BE ABLE TO POST UP THE VERY MUCH ANTICIPATED CHAPTERS FOR "THE ASSASSIN'S MOON" AND "THE FLOURISHING OF THE SAKURA UNDER THE ENGLISH SUN" AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.**

**THANK YOU EVERYONE AGAIN FOR READING AND REVIEWING**


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